Consequences
by Jocelyn
Summary: (Also X-Men Movieverse) Amid all Tony Stark's activity with Peter Parker...he never registered Spider-Man under the Sokovia Accords. Aunt May learns Peter's secret identity a much harder way six months after Homecoming. Now Complete! The Avengers re-assemble and the alliance between the X-Men and Avengers is sealed thanks in no small part to Peter Parker!
1. Chapter 1

_**Author's Note**_ _: Eight days ago, I saw Spider-Man: Homecoming...and this fic exploded to life, over 60,000 words. I had a lot of thoughts after Captain America: Civil War came out, and Homecoming only solidified them. Here follows the result. Since I'm not bound by the copyright boundaries drawn by Fox and Marvel, this fic adjusts the Sokovia Accords to include their comics roots of registering all superpowered individuals, including mutants._

 _ **Canon Note**_ _: This follows a very rough version of the X-Men movieverse, particularly the first two movies, except everybody lives (very unlike me for those of you who've read my other stories!) Mutants from both the comics and movieverse have bit roles in this fic. A little list of the ones who appear are at the end of each chapter. (Also, I have no idea what band instrument Peter used to play - I guess saxophone because he has kind of puffy cheeks, but not puffy enough for tuba.)_

 **Consequences**

 **Chapter One**

Peter Parker knew almost nothing about the Sokovia Accords when he went to Germany. In hindsight, that was kind of weird, since the whole fight between the Avengers was about those laws, on top of the whole Winter Soldier thing. But Mr. Stark and Happy Hogan hadn't explained it to Peter, and neither had any of the other Avengers on Mr. Stark's side before they went to cut Captain America's team off at Leipzig-Halle Airport.

Mr. Stark warned Peter that Captain America was stubborn, but also persuasive. "He'll try and convince you he's right, kid. He thinks he's right, and that makes him dangerous. Be careful."

Peter paid rapt attention to anything Mr. Stark or the rest of his team did say as they headed to the airport, all suited up just like he and Ned used to imagine. "They're not looking to kill anybody – well, Steve and his team aren't," Black Widow corrected herself. "I can't vouch for Barnes."

"Nobody can vouch for Barnes, and that's kind of the point," said War Machine.

"Even so, it's best that we consider the possibility that they will be highly aggressive," said Vision. He turned to Peter and Black Panther. "Wanda Maximoff's power is extremely dangerous. She's capable of mental manipulation, and the target becomes lost in their own memories."

"Not just memories," said Mr. Stark. "She can make you see what you fear the most. Once she gets you, forget it. There's no way out." He pointed at Peter. "Give her and Barnes a wide berth, you understand? Your job is to web up Cap and get the shield from him _fast_ if I call you."

"Yes, sir," Peter said, in as grown-up a voice as he could manage. To his relief, his voice didn't crack.

Nobody talked about anything else for the ride except for the plan of how they were going to apprehend Captain America, Winter Soldier, and the rest of their followers. Nobody thought to ask how old Peter was until Captain America's friend got huge.

* * *

Even after taking Peter home from Germany, Mr. Stark didn't explain the Sokovia Accords. Well, to be fair, he didn't have time, since War Machine was hurt and Captain America and the Winter Soldier had gotten away.

The most Peter ever heard about the Sokovia Accords was in school.

Man, MJ went on a _rant_ during European History about how the Sokovia Accords were a violation of all kinds of civil rights and stuff. Peter'd been bored, but the debate that Mr. Carpenter started then been kind of cool. MJ was usually blasé about stuff, so it was kind of cool to see her get all riled up. It was even cooler to see her beat Flash Thompson's ass and blow holes in every argument he had to make about international security and anti-terrorism.

"You don't get to arrest and detain people for what they _might_ do in any civilized society!" MJ proclaimed. "Whether it's mutants or inhumans or enhanced people like the Avengers, it's a civil rights violation! It's all fine and good for rich white guys like Tony Stark to support the Sokovia Accords; he can take off his Iron Man suit and waltz away to his mansion! But a person whose enhancements aren't technology, or that they were born with, they don't have a choice! The NRA says you can't lock somebody up for just _having_ a gun, and everyone says that's right! Even if a mutant or an enhanced person's powers can be dangerous, you don't get to just detain them without a trial forever!"

Peter'd been having fun watching Flash sputter and stutter up until then, but he and Ned exchanged uncomfortable looks when MJ started ranting about Tony Stark.

It occurred to Peter that he might want to ask Mr. Stark if he should register himself. It sounded…kind of creepy. But class ended, somebody spilled Mountain Dew in the hallway and everyone was yelling about Hulk pee, and Peter realized he'd left his Spanish homework in his locker and had to shove through the chaos to get it without being late…and he never thought about it again.

* * *

Not until six months later, anyway. After capturing Vulture and passing Mr. Stark's character test about whether he was ready to be a full-time Avenger, Peter was getting into what he hoped was a good schedule of being the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man _and_ a high school student.

Well, Aunt May _almost_ caught him trying on the upgraded suit the night Mr. Stark got engaged – man, what a close call that'd been! He was lucky he heard her coming when he was wearing the suit; he'd hidden until she was making dinner, then wriggled out of it and stuffed it into its case and hiding place and claimed he'd been in the bathroom.

So he stayed on the academic decathlon team, but decided to dump band and robotics for good. Peter'd never been all that good. Keeping his saxophone and his uniform maintained was expensive, and since the spider bite, the noise and movement of practice and games were really uncomfortable. With just decathlon and homework, he thought he could make it work.

He dutifully informed Happy if he saw any really out of the ordinary weapons and powers when he was out patrolling. Mr. Stark got in touch a _little_ more often, sometimes just a text or a quick call, but at least it let Peter know that people were actually listening to his reports.

When Peter spotted a guy at an art festival making really cool sculptures out of metal, glass, plastic, and stone apparently just with his brain, that was interesting. Peter wasn't even patrolling at the time; he and May were just out enjoying the first nice day of spring where they didn't have to wear coats and boots. "So sixteen, and you're not embarrassed to be seen out with me yet?" May teased.

"Never," Peter vowed. "I'll even hold your hand! Hi, everybody, I'm out with my aunt and I don't care if it's uncool!"

It was May who called his attention to Madison Jeffries, a guy maybe five years older than Peter, obviously some artsie hipster type but who still made awesome X-Wing replicas. Peter was intrigued enough to text Ned. _Come check out this artist at the Utopia Art Festival!_ "Can I take a picture? I want my friend to come see these!"

"Sure!" the guy said.

Ned showed up twenty minutes later while Peter, May, and a small crowd were watching Madison bend delicate lines of metal wire into futuristic shapes without even touching them. "That is so…cool!" Ned breathed. "How're you doing that?"

"That'd be telling!" Madison replied.

"It's because you're a mutie, ain't it?" said a less-impressed, more-nasty voice.

Peter's senses started to tingle, but he wasn't the only person in the group who turned to frown at the big, redneck-looking dude in a red hat. There were others, however, who gave that same frown to Madison, like the guy making cool sculptures was somehow doing something wrong. Madison answered, "No, chill, man, I use magnets."

"Glass doesn't work with magnets!" said a girl, though she sounded more playful than accusing.

"It does if it has metal _in_ it," Madison replied.

The guy in the red hat suddenly had a couple of buddies. "So show us the magnets, if you wanna prove you're not a mutie."

Madison put his sculpture down. "Get lost, man, I'm not sharing my trade secrets!"

"Even if he was a mutant, it's not your business!" said a familiar voice.

"Oh, hey, MJ!" Ned called.

MJ didn't take her eyes off the red-hatted guy who'd turned around towards her, and the hair on the back of Peter's neck stood on end. "Peter…" May murmured.

"I'm just…gonna get MJ. C'mon, they'll back off her when they see she's got guys with her."

"Guys half their size, but whatever," Ned muttered, but he and Peter pushed through the crowd. May followed them.

MJ was trying her mad debate skills on three big dudes who probably didn't have three brain cells between them, and Peter pretended to laugh. "Hey, MJ, c'mon, Madison's trying to make a living. Argue European history in class!"

May added to the red hats, "And you three, if you don't like cool YouTube tricks, why don't you go away instead of picking fights!"

"Damn muties are illegal," retorted the first red hat guy, and Peter's vision started to tunnel as he took a step towards May. "They're fucking unnatural - "

"HEY, watch your language, there are children here!" several women shouted in chorus, and to Peter's intense relief, that got the guys' attention off May _and_ MJ.

Several other adults, all bigger than May, started getting between the red hat dudes and Madison's booth, and Peter and May tugged Ned and MJ back. "Bullies shouldn't get away with it," MJ fumed.

"There are better ways than arguing with them in public," May whispered. "Especially when they're looking for a fight, and these guys are."

"She's right, you know," said a man wearing red sunglasses. He wasn't anywhere near as big as the three red hat dudes, and neither was the redhead lady with him, but something about them was tugged at Peter's senses too, if not the same way as the assholes.

Another woman, black with incredible white-dyed hair, sidled up to Madison. "You might want to pack up now."

"Aw, come on, Ro, I'm trying to make sales!"

"These thugs are going to come back with their friends and smash up all your beautiful work, first chance they get!" she insisted.

A few of the onlookers murmured in display and began hastily asking prices. "How much is that little X-Wing?" Ned asked. "The smallest one."

"Fifteen, but the next biggest here is twenty-five, and the awning rises. See?"

"Aww, man," Peter said, glad to get the bystanders back on the subject of Madison's art now that the debate with the red hat dudes was moving away. "That's awesome, but it's outside my budget…"

May had relaxed, and gave each of them a poke. "You could go halfsies on it if you can manage a custody arrangement." MJ actually giggled. She was more interested in the intricate, abstract sculptures, but those had price tags starting around the hundreds of dollars.

"Your work's really beautiful. I don't care if it's magnets or that you're a mutant," she told Madison. "You should be proud of it." But Madison winced, and she protested, "Aw, come on, even if you were, it's nothing to be ashamed of!"

The white-haired lady put a hand on MJ's shoulder. "Not ashamed, no, but men like the ones you just met will wait for the chance to get a suspected mutant alone and deal out a beating, and it's very wrong to push anyone to out themselves before they're ready."

For the first time that Peter had known MJ, she looked completely stricken. "Oh my god," she whispered, and her eyes actually welled up.

"Hey, hey, don't worry about it, kiddo," said Madison. "Your heart's in the right place. Here." He handed her the smallest of the delicate pieces that she admired. It was a geometric pattern that reminded Peter a little of a spider web – if way more intricate than he could ever generate even with pliable web and a LOT of time on his hands. "On the house."

"Oh, no, no, that's not right!" MJ protested, fumbling for her wallet. "I can't do that, how much is it?"

Madison paused a beat, and Peter and May grinned at each other. _Good thing there isn't a price tag on it, since she won't let him discount it._ "Twenty-five."

"Oh…no, sorry," MJ shook her head, put it back on the table, and backed away. "I can't, but thanks."

Peter and Ned looked at each other. Ned grinned and nodded. "Sold!" Peter announced.

"What?! No – Peter, Ned, no, you can't do that!" MJ protested, while it was May's turn to go all tear-eyed. Peter and Ned ignored her and fished out their spending money. "Come on, no!"

"We were just here checking out X-Wings, and you're defending civil rights," Peter retorted, side-stepping her when she tried to stop him from handing his money over. Madison winked as he took it.

"AND standing up to deplorable jerks who're big enough to step on all three of us!" added Ned. "It's really pretty, and it's, y'know, unique, original. We can get nerdy Star Wars stuff everywhere."

"Hey, the Star Wars stuff keeps me in business," said Madison, wrapping the ornament in tissue. "There's no shame in being nerds; it took me years to build a passable X-Wing!"

MJ let herself be persuaded, and Peter thought it had to be worth the murmurs of praise from the onlookers both to them and to May, and the way May kept having to move her glasses to wipe her eyes, and the complete, amazed delight on MJ's face as Madison handed her the little box. People even applauded.

 _And all without wearing my Spider-Man suit._ This was a good day.

…until voices started rising again a few yards away. "Oh, great, the deplorables didn't leave," May growled. The white-haired lady pushed past them, and Peter's skin was tingling. Madison sighed heavily and started putting his stuff into boxes over the protests of some other festival-goers who didn't want him to be intimidated.

The shoving started, May snapped, "Get back!" at Peter, MJ, and Ned, then there was a flash of dazzling red light, and people started running and screaming.

"Muties! Muties!" one of the red hats – no, an entirely different group of red hats started shouting, and one of them grabbed a planter off a display table and hurled it at the guy who'd been wearing red sunglasses…but now had something entirely different on his face.

"Get down!" Madison grabbed MJ and May by the shoulders. MJ needed little urging to scramble under his table, but May grabbed Peter with one hand and Ned with the other.

Peter stood frozen. How could he get his suit on without –

Red light flashed again, people were running, and two of the deplorables went sliding across the sidewalk as if it was covered with ice. The redhead lady had her hand splayed out at them, and this time Peter _saw_ the second guy do something with that…device on his face that knocked down the one who tried to jump him.

Even if he could get into the Spider-Man suit without May seeing and in time to help, these strangers had the situation well in hand. And Madison reached past him…a bike rack suddenly began twisting like it'd turned into an earthworm, MJ shrieked, and the thing slithered across the pavement and wrapped itself around the three red hats. "Holy shit!" Peter yelped.

The ones remaining – four guys, who didn't have red hats but were definitely the same anti-mutant ilk as the others – were all off their feet and scrambling backwards. "Get. Lost," the sunglasses guy ordered.

The thugs got lost. Sunglasses guy turned towards the booth, and everyone flinched, but he just said to Madison, "Sorry, man, but you've gotta get out of here."

"I know, I know," said Madison, and when Peter looked up he saw that Madison's artwork was…crawling into boxes on its own, or the boxes were scooping the stuff up.

"Wow!" breathed Ned.

MJ was actually crying. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry!"

"Don't worry about it, sweetheart, this wasn't your fault," he said, without pausing from his hasty packing. "This isn't the first time that's happened, and it won't be the last. You didn't 'out' me."

May tugged them all back out from under the table, and other festival-goers watched, murmuring in confusion (and filming on their phones) as Madison and the other three – they had to be mutants too – packed up his stuff and abandoned the booth in a hurry. Peter took a few halting steps after them, but was stopped by May's hand on his arm.

By the time the cops showed up to figure out how to deal with the three guys wrapped in a bike rack, the mutants were long gone. Peter thought about going to try to help get the deplorables loose, but there was no way he could keep people from seeing, and honestly…he thought they kind of deserved it. Jerks!

 _ **To Be Continued...**_

 _ **Coming Soon:**_ _Tony Stark has some warnings for Peter about mutants, and Peter finds the Sokovia Accords becoming less of an academic exercise when he meets a young mutant...and when some government agents have questions for him._

 _This fic is fully drafted, and I hope to have updates every few days._

 **Please don't forget to review!**


	2. Chapter 2

_**Author's Notes** : I'm blown away by the incredible feedback I've received! Thank you all so much! As I've mentioned, this fic treats blends the MCU Sokovia Accords with the Superhero/Superhuman Registration Act(s) that caused the comics Civil War storyline. They did indeed require registration of all superpowered humans and nonhumans, including aliens, enhanced humans, inhumans, mutants, and anybody else they dang well decided fit the bill._

 _Also, it's worth noting that Peter isn't always a reliable narrator, particularly on people's motives and attitudes. He's a naive 15-year-old who still has a lot to learn about the world and now has a double-dose of trauma (the death of a parent figure and the battle with Vulture) on top of it._

 **Chapter Two**

MJ was really quiet and sad in class the Monday after the art festival. "It wasn't your fault," Peter insisted. "Those guys had already decided Madison was a mutant."

"Why should that _matter?_ He wasn't doing anything wrong!" She turned the little ornament that Peter and Ned had bought for her around and around in her hands.

"Yeah, he wasn't. It sucks."

MJ looked annoyed that Peter and Ned weren't as angry as she was. "Have you seen what the police reports and the news said? ' _Unregistered mutants attacked the art festival!_ ' That's complete bullshit! They were protecting him from a bunch of assholes!"

"Michelle, watch you language, please!" said one of the cafeteria monitors.

Ned leaned forward. "You still talk to Tony Stark about your old internship sometimes, right, Peter? Maybe you oughtta say something. Maybe he can use his influence, y'know?"

But that just got MJ's hackles up again. "Tony Stark is one of the people who got the Sokovia Accords and that registration stuff passed in the first place!"

Peter sighed. "It's not like Mr. Stark and I chat about law enforcement." _Not exactly, anyway._ "But I'll…I dunno, I'll write a witness statement or something for him. I doubt it's anything he doesn't already know."

* * *

To Peter's surprise, he heard from Happy before he even got around to it. _What were you doing at that mutant incident at the Utopia Art Festival on Saturday?_ Happy messaged him.

"I was there with my aunt and my friends! And, hey, I saw the whole thing. That guy, the artist, Madison Jeffries, he was totally not the one who started it! A bunch of 'make America great' jerks started calling him mutie and started a fight. Well, there was this guy with this thing on his face that shot some kind of lasers."

 _Stand by, kid, Tony wants to talk to you._

Peter's phone rang, and there was Mr. Stark on Facetime. " _Kid, listen up. The mutants you saw on Saturday are called the X-Men, and they are way outside friendly neighborhood Spider-Man league, you understand?"_

"I…yeah, okay, but Mr. Stark, here's the thing – they didn't hurt anybody! They could've, but the only guys they messed with were the ones who messed with Madison first!"

Mr. Stark frowned. " _How long have you known Madison Jeffries?_ "

"I met him at the festival, he was just…making cool sculptures!" Peter insisted, bewildered by Mr. Stark's suspicious tone. "C'mon, that's not a crime, and the jerks were trying to start something! He was nice, not doing anything, and those 'X-Men,' they didn't do anything either until those jerks started throwing punches!"

 _"_ _Okay. I'll make a note of it, kid, but the point stands: you run into the X-Men again or ANY mutants with powers, you back off and call me directly. Some mutants are just trying to get by and do cool tricks for the YouTube hits, but some are doing a lot more, and they're incredibly dangerous – even to people like me, even, to say nothing of people like you and Aunt May. Most of them don't go for petty theft, or if they do, it's just circumstance, but the X-Men are powerful, dangerous, and some of America's most wanted._ "

"I…look, Mr. Stark…" What MJ had said echoed in Peter's memory. "I'm not…trying to make things complicated or anything…I heard some things in school about the Sokovia Accords, that registering people because of their DNA or even their powers is a human rights violation."

Mr. Stark snorted, but at least he didn't get insulted. " _Yeah, kid, in a perfect world, it would be. But you've already seen the world's not perfect, and we have to start somewhere. That means knowing what the threats are and where they are, so yeah, if someone has the power to level a building with his eyes like the guy you saw on Saturday – he's called Cyclops – we need them under control. I know, this makes a great subject for a Western Civ essay, but the real world's a lot more messy. I'm still dealing with the fallout from Germany, and Cap and all his supporters are on the lam, and on top of that I have the X-Men to deal with."_

"Cap's from Brooklyn, you know – I promise," Peter said hastily as Mr. Stark bristled. "I won't go hunting for him. Just saying, maybe he'd be hiding out on familiar turf, with the Winter Soldier, since they're from here."

Mr. Stark's eyes hardened. " _That thought's occurred to me. You see_ them, _or anybody else we fought in Germany, you call me too, understand?_ "

"Yessir," Peter mock-saluted, hoping to lighten the mood. "It's good to talk to you."

Mr. Stark eyed him then pointed at his phone. " _I mean it, kid! This better not be a 'yes, Mr. Stark, I'll do what you say' then running off to do the opposite moment!"_

"I promise!" Peter laughed. "Seriously, I'm fine just making Queens a little safer from muggers and _not_ giving May heartburn!"

" _Good boy. Behave, and I'll invite you to the Tower for Stark Industries' Oscar Night reception._ "

"Will I get stuck on snacks detail again?"

" _Not this time, I thought you could serve drinks – oh, wait, you're too young to serve alcohol. Snack detail it is! G'night!_ " The screen went dark. Call ended.

* * *

MJ did her semester presentation for European History about the Sokovia Accords, comparing them to the internment of the Japanese in the US and the Holocaust and a bunch of other genocides.

Peter and Ned shot each other uncomfortable looks through the whole thing, especially seeing how passionate MJ was. Now neither of them could help thinking of Madison, just making X-Wings and pretty abstract sculptures out of glass and metal and stone, with people yelling "mutie"…but then, there was Cyclops with that crazy laser on his head that Mr. Stark said could level a building…except he'd only used it to stop those deplorables. And he hadn't killed anyone, even though he probably could have.

Peter asked MJ how many mutants there might be in the metro New York area, and she trotted out some statistics that made him and Ned _really_ tense. "As many as a million. Though, you see, that doesn't always mean powers like," she lowered her voice to a whisper, "Madison and his friends. Those are called alpha mutants. Mutants are just people who have the X-gene, and most of the time, it's either inactive or doesn't cause powers. I read a paper by Dr. Jean Grey. She's a geneticist _and_ an alpha mutant. She testified to Congress when they were trying to just register mutants. Those bills failed, but now the Sokovia Accords did it."

"But the Sokovia Accords are just for enhancements like Iron Man and the Avengers," protested Peter. _And…me?_

MJ huffed and pulled up a page from her presentation notes. "Here, these are the definitions of enhancement in that Sokovia Accords."

 _An "enhanced individual" shall be defined as any person, human or otherwise, with superhuman capabilities. This includes individuals whose powers are an innate function of their biology as well as individuals who utilize highly advanced technology to grant themselves superhuman capabilities._

 _"_ _Superhuman capabilities" shall be defined as physical or psionic powers, whether by natural or artificial causes, which are outside the scope of these Accords' definition of "human capabilities", or genetic variations which may result in manifestation of such superhuman capabilities._

"What does that even mean?" demanded Ned. "Why can't Congress write laws in English?"

"They write stuff this way so it can be interpreted as broadly as possible to serve any agenda they want," MJ replied. "Just _being_ a mutant or having enhanced powers is against the law unless you register!" She could be really, kind of…pompous about stuff, but today, the subject matter was so unnerving that Peter wasn't looking for opportunities to exit the discussion.

Instead, he just kept wondering. _Does that mean me?_ "So what are the odds that we run into more mutants like Madison and the X-Men?"

"The what?"

"The, uh, that guy with the red laser, there's stuff about him online," Peter hedged. "He's part of some mutant terrorist group called the X-Men."

MJ frowned and promptly googled the X-Men (which Peter actually hadn't done). Some results did talk about them like terrorists, but there was also a fansite that said, **_Before there were the Avengers, there were the X-Men, fighting crime and saving lives! Support the superheroes who didn't sell out!_**

"So, you know Spider-Man, people say," said MJ. "How do you know _he's_ not a mutant? I mean, he's done some crazy stuff, and the police have a reward for him. Is he a terrorist or a hero? Doesn't that all depend on who's in charge and what they want from him?"

Ned hastily argued, "Aw, come on, Spider-Man's never hurt anybody, and he only goes after criminals!"

"How do you know?" MJ countered. "Just because that's all you've _seen_ him do – well, all _we've_ seen these 'X-Men' do is stop a bunch of deplorables who were trying to beat up some artist at a festival!" MJ folded her arms and leaned back from her laptop. "I'm not gonna let Breitbart and Bill O'Reilly or President Bunt's tweets tell me who I'm supposed to be scared of. And you shouldn't believe everything Tony Stark says even if he did give you an internship for a few weeks." She eyed Peter. "What'd you do on that internship anyway? You never said."

"It was…kinda…not what I hoped, I guess," Peter stammered, scrambling to recall the cover story he'd come up with for May. "A lot of…getting snacks, making…reports, stuff that nobody actually read. I didn't see much of Mr. Stark. He talked to me on the phone a couple times."

Ned returned to poking around Google on MJ's laptop. "I'd bet Mr. Stark knows more about who's dangerous and who isn't than anybody in President Bunt's cabinet or Fox News. I mean, come on, he's been living on the front lines since 2008!"

"Maybe. Still, now 'Mr. Stark' tells us Captain America's a terrorist, but we still watch his motivational speeches," MJ retorted. "And Captain America had to leave the Avengers because he thought the Sokovia Accords were wrong."

"Nuh-uh, Captain America bailed on the Avengers because he was trying to protect the Winter Soldier," Peter shot back. "And, man, talk about Exhibit A, _that_ guy! You know what he did to Tony Stark's parents!"

Mr. Stark had all but sworn out a blood oath of vengeance after returning from chasing the Soldier and Captain America to Siberia. He didn't talk much publicly about Captain America, but the world knew that the Winter Soldier had murdered Mr. Stark's parents in 1991 in cold blood, and that he'd assassinated hundreds of people including possibly JFK.

MJ was unconvinced. "Before he was the Winter Soldier, he was a prisoner of war for _decades_. So whatever enhancements he got were probably against his will. I'm not going to just assume he's an evil bond villain after serving alongside Captain America in World War II!" She blinked at something behind them, and Peter and Ned turned to see Principal Morita watching them with a…funny expression.

Peter and Ned looked around, wondering what they'd done, but Principal Morita walked away without saying anything. The three of them shrugged. When the bell rang, Ned whispered, "Maybe you oughtta ask Mr. Stark - "

"Whoa, Ned, I am _not_ asking Mr. Stark about whether he should really want to arrest the guy who murdered his parents!" Peter hissed.

* * *

Peter thought maybe he _would_ ask Mr. Stark more about mutants and the X-Men, especially after he was out on patrol and saw a little girl making lights that didn't look like they came from anywhere. "That's really cool!" he said as Spider-Man, swinging down to watch her on her fire escape. "How're you doing that?"

She giggled. "Magic!"

"Oooh, magic! Show me!"

Up closer – yeah, this was no sleight of hand. This kid, maybe eight years old, really was making a little laser show with her hands, or maybe with her head. As he applauded, she asked, "Are you magic too, Spider-Man?"

"Me? Nahh, not like that. I'm just a spider-man. I can do whatever a spider can do." _More or less._

She started singing, "Spider-Man, Spider-Man, does whatever a spider can!"

"Woooo, I've got a theme song now!" he exclaimed, charmed even more. "What's your name?"

"Alison Blaire - "

"Ali!" A woman came sprinting out of the upper floor door and rushed down the stairs. "What're you – who're you talking to?"

Peter quickly stepped back. "Just your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man, ma'am, no worries! She was showing me her light magic!"

Far from being reassured, the mom turned dead white. "Ali," she croaked, scooping the girl into her arms. "I told you not to do that in front of people…"

"But he's Spider-Man! He's nice!"

The mom gulped. "It's – it's, not what it looks like, she's just really good with tricks." She held out a laser pen frantically. "See? She's got them in lots of colors - "

" – it's okay," Peter said, even though they both knew she was lying. "I'm worried about protecting people from muggers and giving directions and stuff. It's not against the law to make laser shows." _But it is against the law to be a mutant if you're not registered…_ That couldn't apply to Ali. Lights weren't dangerous. Well… he pointed at Ali. "You remember never to shine your lights in people's faces or point them at helicopters and airplanes, right?"

"Yes, Spider-Man," she chirped.

"Okay. Then we're cool. You have a nice night." He flipped off the balcony to the sound of Ali's squeal of delight.

Was he supposed to report that? Call up Mr. Stark or Happy? "Hey, Karen, tell me, am I really supposed to priority call Mr. Stark about a little kid who makes light shows for fun?"

 _"_ _Well, technically, yes, Peter, if you follow his orders about mutants and enhanced people to the letter, you need to report any that you see. But there's room for your own judgment just the same as Mr. Stark when he's Iron Man."_

"So I think I'm judging it not worth bothering him about that there's a little girl who makes lights who _might_ be a mutant."

 _"_ _No, I don't think he'll be too annoyed. Maybe mention it next time you talk._ "

* * *

Peter never got a chance. Only a few days after Peter met Ali, Principal Morita came into European History looking very anxious, flanked by two uniformed men. "Peter Parker? Come with us, please?"

"Whoooa, man, what'd you do now, Parker?" demanded Flash.

"Hey, shut up!" snapped Ned.

Half the class looked excited, the other half scared, and Ned and MJ – and Mr. Carpenter and Principal Morita, were all in the scared category. Peter's skin started to crawl, his senses started to tingle…but he slowly started putting his stuff into his bag in a very heavy silence.

The two men – shit, they had guns! – came in to stand on either side of his row of desks, like there was anywhere he was going to run other than the door. There were a lot of kids now breathing a lot faster.

MJ jumped up. "Hey! You know that if you want to question a minor, you have to do it with his guardian present, and he has a right to a lawyer!"

The uniformed guys blinked at her, then they both grinned, and one even laughed. That was the most reassuring sign so far. _Breathe, Spider-Man, they're not going to stick a bag over your head and beat you up in the back of a truck…probably._

"Peter," Ned croaked as Peter got up. "Should I call…Mr. Stark?"

Everyone including the two suits looked at Ned, and he cringed. Well, now it was out there, so Peter forced a casual shrug. "Can't hurt."

"Relax, son, we just have some questions. Come on." One of the suits took Peter's arm, and he scanned the uniform up and down. There weren't any badges or IDs that said "police" or "FBI" or what kind of agents they actually were.

"Hey." He stopped. Both lost their smiles. "What…who're you with? Like FBI or police?"

That got MJ riled up again. "Yeah, they have to identify themselves!"

One of the suits rolled his eyes. "We're ICE, technically, special assigned forces on enhanced and mutant activities."

The room exploded into whispers. " _Mutant?"_

" _Enhanced…"_

MJ started shaking her head desperately at Mr. Carpenter, who looked as paralyzed as Principal Morita. "Honey, sit down, and stop reading Huffington Post," said one of the suits, and this time they both took Peter's arms.

"Peter! Hey, Peter, don't go with them! Don't let them – don't let them leave the school with you, don't!" she yelled, ignoring Mr. Carpenter hissing at her to be quiet.

The door swung closed, and Peter could still hear her and Ned and several of the other kids arguing with Mr. Carpenter. "Where _are_ you taking me?"

"To answer some questions, that's all, son, relax. It's about some incidents you've been involved in recently."

Principal Morita said, "That young lady had a point. You're not entitled to interrogate a student or remove him from this campus without authorization from his guardian."

One of the men raised a hand in Principal Morita's face. "Okay, listen, a couple of jumpy kids can shoot their mouths off at us, Teach, but you can't. You've seen the warrant; we've got jurisdiction. You got a problem with it, file a complaint!"

"Now, hang on!" Principal Morita grabbed Peter's shoulder and _yanked_ him back. If Peter'd been, well, normal, that really would've hurt, because the two suits tried to hold on. "You are in _my_ jurisdiction, gentlemen, and something about this seems very shady. I am entitled to know exactly where a student is going who's being removed from this campus, and if I'm not satisfied with your answer, then he doesn't leave!"

"Oh, for Christ's sake, it's just police headquarters downtown!" one of the suits tried to pull Peter back, but when Principal Morita didn't let go, the other one _shoved_ him! "Back off!"

"Jim!" demanded a teacher in her classroom doorway. "What the hell's going on?"

"Stay in your classrooms," Principal Morita ordered. He stalked after the suits as they started leading Peter towards the doors. "Peter, listen to me. Do not answer their questions until you either get your guardian or a lawyer in the room with you, no matter what you've done, you hear me?"

"Y-yes," Peter stammered. This was insane. He could break these guys' grips and dodge them without a problem – but that'd just prove that he _was_ enhanced. "Mr. Morita, hey, I did an internship with Tony Stark, can someone call him too?"

"I will!" Principal Morita followed them out the doors to their car, pointing at them. "If this student has so much as a paper cut when he gets back, Corporal Creed, I'm warning you, you'll both make the front page of the Daily Bugle _and_ the New York Times!"

"See, this is why the president doesn't let reporters into the White House anymore," huffed the other suit. "You can't even pull a kid out of class for a chat without everyone calling the ACLU."

"Where're you taking me?" Peter asked once they were in the car.

"Downtown to police headquarters like we said, that's all. Look, son, you be straight with us, you'll be back in class before the bell rings! God, the way people freak out when we're just trying to do our jobs!"

Peter's senses were starting to calm down a little. "So what do you want to know that you can't just ask me at school? Why's it gotta be downtown?"

"Because it's gotta be made into an official record," huffed Creed. He turned around in his seat, looking Peter in the eyes. "Seriously, we've all got stuff we'd rather be doing. I can see you're not America's Most Wanted, I doubt you're running guns for terrorists, and you don't look like you've been radicalized or anything, so I'll be just as glad as you to get your file closed and move on to people we actually need to worry about."

What Peter wouldn't have given for his suit…except if he had it, they'd find it. So it was probably lucky… _oh shit, what if they're searching the apartment?_ _Please, please let Ned and Principal Morita have called Mr. Stark – and let Mr. Stark have actually answered for once!_

It wasn't even that he was scared they were going to do anything to do him – whatever MJ thought about mutants and enhanced people ( _like me?_ ) being registered, Peter was pretty sure that didn't involve actual internment camps or mass murder, however nasty history could look. So what was the worst that could happen?

 _The worst that happens is they find out I'm Spider-Man, and Mr. Stark has to do damage control. I have to get registered…aw, man, May is gonna KILL me…but maybe I'll still get to stay in school since I'm underage. Hell, at worst, I have to join the Avengers after all, then Mr. Stark's got no excuse not to train me. It'll be cool. I'll get to actually talk to the other Avengers, like Vision and War Machine and Black Panther, and they won't all be going, "Hey, how old's this guy?"_

But yeah, his heart was slowing down, and his senses were easing up too. A couple of federal agents being rude and pushy was unpleasant, but it wasn't a threat.

After all, Peter was American, he was a citizen, he wasn't a terrorist or anything. (It probably didn't hurt that he was white, though he felt really dirty for thinking that way.) He'd messed up a few times, like with the Staten Island Ferry, but nobody'd died, and the few times he'd seen mutants, he hadn't even gotten involved.

He had nothing to worry about.

 _ **To Be Continued...**_

 _ **Coming Soon:**_ _Peter Parker hasn't been seen since being removed from class. Word reaches Tony Stark more than a day later, who now launches on a desperate race to track Peter down... and comes to some painful revelations about what Peter means to him in the process._

 **PLEASE don't forget to review!**


	3. Chapter 3

_**Author's Notes:**_ _I'm so overwhelmed by the fantastic reviews and discussion of this fic! Thank you all so very much!_

 _ **Canon Notes:**_ _Some of you who read the X-Men comics will have noticed by now that this fic makes use of some of their villains, though I don't follow the comics canon much on Graydon Creed, Alan Lewis, or the Sentinels. Rather, I put them in a context based on current events. Speaking of current events, President Ronald Bunt is an original character...sort of. As a rule, I avoid RPF, and even if I didn't, I would not have_ that _name appear in my fanfic. I have standards._

 **Chapter Three**

Ned and MJ had left a dozen messages with the number for Peter's old internship before school was even out. Flash laughed at them. "Look at you two, he hasn't even been gone an hour, and you're all Mission Impossible!"

Principal Morita and Mr. Carpenter weren't laughing. Principal Morita pulled them aside and said, "Do not start gossip by discussing this with your classmates, but if you hear from Peter or from Stark Industries, I want you to let me know. I haven't reached them yet, and I don't like what just happened."

"We will," MJ half-whispered. She sounded more scared than Ned had ever imagined, and that was scaring him more than anything ever had – including that elevator ride in the Washington Monument.

"Has – has someone called Peter's Aunt May?" Ned croaked. _Please don't make me be the one to do it!_

"I'll do it," said Principal Morita, to Ned's relief.

So the two of them kept their mouths shut, even though the whole damn school had heard that a couple of federal agents had pulled Peter Parker out of class, and everybody had questions. Mr. Harrington slapped Flash with detention for continuing to say Peter Parker'd been arrested for terrorism after Ms. Warren told him to stop. Then he let Ned and MJ sit in his classroom after canceling decathlon practice.

Finally, three hours after school was out, the teachers told them there was still no news, so Ned decided to go to Peter's. Maybe somebody'd just forgotten to let them know and he was home already.

"I'll go with you," MJ muttered.

They knocked, but nobody was home. Ned called Peter's phone, and it went to voicemail. His texts went unanswered.

* * *

The next day, Peter wasn't back. Mr. Carpenter pulled Ned aside and asked if he'd heard anything. That told Ned that the teachers didn't know anything either.

Ned cracked at the end of the day and called Peter's Aunt May. " _H-hello?_ "

 _Oh God, she's crying._ "Hi…Hi, it's Ned Leeds."

 _"_ _Ned? H-have you heard anything about where Peter is?_ "

"No." His throat was tightening up, it was getting hard to breathe…MJ came down the hall, saw the look on Ned's face, and actually ran up to him. Ned shook his head at her and choked out, "I'm sorry, I haven't, I was calling to see if you had. I'm sorry!"

" _Nobody'll tell me!"_ Aunt May cried. " _I can't find him, Ned! I can't reach Tony Stark! I don't know where they've taken him!_ "

"Who is that?" MJ whispered.

"His Aunt May," Ned mouthed.

" _I've gotta go, in case someone calls, if you hear, Ned, tell me!"_

"I promise, I promise, bye!" Ned gasped, and ended the call. "Oh my God. MJ…she doesn't know where he is."

MJ leaned against the wall, her hands over her mouth. "I told him not to go with them. _Shit._ What the hell can we even do?"

Ned's mind raced. What would the Avengers do, if one of them was missing? _Who do the Avengers call? Hell, the Avengers don't have to call…_ He pushed himself off the wall. "I'm going downtown. To Stark Tower. I'm gonna – talk to them where he used to work, see if somebody can get Mr. Stark in touch with Peter's aunt."

"But the Avengers aren't there anymore!"

"I know, but – but Stark Industries still has offices in there, and I can get there faster than Avengers headquarters upstate. There's gotta be somebody who can get Mr. Stark on the phone!"

"I'll go with you - "

"No! No - look, MJ, sorry, but you can't. The stuff Peter did for Mr. Stark - it was kinda hush-hush, okay?" Ned explained awkwardly. "I'm not even supposed to know, I only found out by accident. I know Mr. Stark'll care, if we can just get word to him!"

MJ stared at him for several breaths. "He's…" She caught herself. "Okay. Okay. If there's anything I can do, text me, okay? No matter what time it is."

"I will. Thanks."

* * *

Happy Hogan never forgave himself for not listening to those messages sooner. Peter Parker left _tons_ of messages and texts and vlogs for Happy and Tony. Happy didn't always screen them right away.

As a result, he didn't find out the kid was in trouble until one of his little buddies showed up at the Stark Industries offices in the Tower and said enough words for Friday's algorithms to alert him.

 _"_ _Happy, you should know there's a teenaged boy in the SI Tower office lobby who seems to know that Spider-Man is Peter Parker,"_ said Friday. " _And he's awfully upset._ "

"Hm." Happy checked his usual channels. "No alerts have come in from the suit. He hasn't even been out on patrol since the weekend. Anything in his messages or the other incoming lines?"

 _"_ _Happy?"_ said Friday after the 2.3 seconds it took for the AI to search them. " _I'm calling the boss in from Santorini. I think we have a serious situation._ "

* * *

 _"_ _Boss, you better get back here. Federal agents pulled Peter Parker out of class thirty-six hours ago, and_ nobody _knows where he is now, including his aunt._ "

Upon getting Happy and Friday's message, Tony dropped what he was doing, donned his suit, and flew from Santorini to the New Avengers Facility at Mach 2. "Get his aunt to the compound along with anybody else who saw them take him."

Four hours later, Tony arrived at the compound to find Aunt May on the verge of a nervous breakdown, an absolutely terrified buddy of Peter's, and two of the kid's high school teachers. "What the _hell_ happened?"

" _Why don't you know?!_ " Aunt May practically screamed at him.

He got the scant facts out of Principal Morita – James Morita III, yes, grandson of _that_ James Morita, incredible. Any other time, Tony would've wanted to quiz the guy on history, but not today.

"God help me, I should've told the front office to call 911," Morita spat, fists clenched. "I got their names – Corporal Graydon Creed and Corporal Alan Lewis. Both ICE officers, but they said they were part of a special team investigating mutants and enhanced. I've been researching since – there is such a subdivision. It was formed when the Sokovia Accords were implemented; it's called the Sentinel Program. But nobody in the police department has a contact for them, and I've called in a _lot_ of favors."

"I have friends at downtown headquarters too," said the teacher whose class Peter had been yanked from. "They confirmed that a Peter Parker was brought in for questioning, he seemed well-behaved, but he kept trying to lawyer up and asking for his guardian. As far as they knew, everything was fine, and Creed and Lewis were taking him home. Nobody has a clue where they actually took him."

Aunt May sobbed as she paced back and forth. Tony intercepted her. "I'm gonna find him," he promised. "I'm gonna find where he's being held, and if there's even one bruise on him, I will bring down every government office responsible, up to and including the Ronald Bunt administration, you hear me? I swear it."

"What do I do?" she choked out.

He handed her a Starkphone with a panic button built in that he'd designed after the Mandarin business. "This can't be turned off, and the battery won't die. See this big red panic button on the back? It does exactly what it sends on the tin: if you feel threatened by anyone, even the neighborhood drunk, you press it. If you see Peter or get information about where he is, you press it. It'll call me directly – myself, no operators, no middlemen. Me. I'll call you when I know _anything._ "

She burst into tears again, and Morita went to hug her, thankfully sparing Tony the obligation. "Take them home," he told Happy.

"Mr. Stark!" the kid ran after him. Happy went to catch him, but Tony held up a hand. "Mr. Stark," the kid leaned forward and whispered, "I know Peter's Spider-Man."

"Ah, so _you're_ the one who helped him hack my suit."

The kid looked like hell, and Tony immediately felt bad. "I thought…what if they took him because he's Spider-Man?"

"Believe me, kid, that thought is foremost on my mind." Tony had an aide bring him another phone with a panic button. "Did you catch everything I said to Aunt May about when to push this button?"

"Yes, sir."

"You do the exact same thing, hear me?"

As they left, Tony doubted anything would come through to the civilians, but you never knew. So now the U.S. government – or worse, someone else – had been holding Peter for over a day, and Tony was just now finding out. "Friday, what've we got from facial recognition searches?"

 _"_ _It's not good, Boss. The last hit was yesterday afternoon, about four hours after Peter was taken. He was captured by CCTV leaving police headquarters with Corporal Graydon Creed and Corporal Alan Lewis in a different vehicle than he arrived in. He may not have realized that the back of the vehicle was self-contained and pressurized once the door was closed._ "

Tony's heart sank. "Please tell me that wasn't a Stark design."

 _"…_ _Sorry, Boss._ "

It'd been a supposedly non-violent containment measure, to sedate an out-of-control enhanced or mutant suspect. Cheap and easy to install in government vehicles. Tony had designed it for civilian law enforcement in 2015.

 _Of course, if they wanted to cut to the chase, they could switch out sedative gas with something lethal easy enough – no, no, no, I am so not thinking along those lines yet._ "Find the vehicle. I'm impounding it. Get me a reason. Tell Vision to meet me wherever it is. We need to know what they gave Peter and fast. And find me those two agents."

 _"_ _Already on it, Boss_."

* * *

Vision met Tony at one of the police garages with a kit to identify any chemicals that had been in the back seat chamber. "I'm detecting heavy concentrations of halothane," said Vision. "Also chloroform."

Two powerful sedatives that could be made odorless. "Anything lethal?" Tony's voice was almost steady.

"No. There are also hairs on the seat that we should collect. We know that young Peter was in this vehicle, but the hair will confirm whether he was sedated."

"Do it. Friday, what's our progress on tracking those agents or this car?"

" _The vehicle was passed through security at Laguardia on Tuesday evening, Boss, two hours after Peter was last seen. There was no visible passenger in the back seat, but he might have been lying down by that point. They entered a high-security zone where there are no cameras._ "

"Meaning he could be anywhere on God's green earth. DAMN IT!" Tony slammed his fist into the trunk of the car. No dent, five bruised fingers. The car was reinforced.

 _"_ _Boss, I have a hit on Graydon Creed. He and Alan Lewis are in the habit of attending informal meetings at the American Legion hall every few weeks. The Legion hall is rented at those times by an organization called the Friends of Humanity, dedicated to anti-mutant and enhanced activities."_

"Fucking figures. Where are they stationed and how fast can I get there?"

" _No records show any contact information for them within ICE, but that's consistent with ICE policies. The only reason the Sentinel Program's existence was made public is due to a leak by the Department of Justice. There is no personnel roster, no headquarters, no contact information._ "

"What about Creed and Lewis themselves? Do they exist, or are they ghosts?"

" _They both live in Port Washington._ "

"Awfully fancy neighborhood for a couple of low-ranking federal employees."

Vision stood up. "Tony, it will violate several laws if we accost law enforcement officers at their places of residence."

Tony almost swung at him. He managed to restrain himself, but snarled, "I want my kid back. I want him _now_. If they thought it was worth gassing him unconscious in the back of a car, I don't consider their intentions honorable. He's a citizen, he was entitled to a lawyer and his guardian, he got neither, and somebody's answering for that. I'm gonna tear this fucking city apart until I get him home. Come with me or don't. Turn me in to the same 'lawful authorities' or don't. You do what you want, Vision. I'm going."

Vision paused for only a few seconds before answering, "I'll return to the compound to test these hair samples. I'll advise you as soon as I confirmation whether Peter was sedated by those agents. Try not to physically assault them."

As the two of them launched, Tony muttered to himself, "I'll _try._ "

* * *

Creed and Lewis were no-shows for three…fucking…days. Tony dutifully visited Aunt May every day with next to no news. He didn't tell her that the cops downtown had reported a blood sample being taken along with the usual fingerprinting, and that the results had arrived while Peter was being questioned. He didn't tell her the kid had seemed calm and believed, along with the cops, that the two agents were taking him home when he got into the back of that car. He didn't tell her that Vision had confirmed that Peter had been gassed unconscious in the back of that car, probably without any clue that he wasn't on his way home.

 _Without the suit, he was just a nice, trusting, all-American kid. Riding in the back of an SUV after a stern talking-to by a couple of friendly neighborhood feds. Hit with a dose of high-tech odorless gas in a chamber designed by his own goddamn mentor that probably had him under before he even realized he was getting sleepy._

 _I stopped manufacturing weapons. I kept on manufacturing "law enforcement aids." God damn me to hell._

Once or twice, Tony even pulled out that burner phone back at the compound. Rogers wouldn't have the resources to track down a kid taken by feds, but Romanoff and Barton would.

Or would they? Tony had Maria Hill burning up the phones to every SHIELD agent left that she still trusted. Were Romanoff and Barton likely to uncover anything that Phil Coulson wouldn't? In the end, he put the phone away without making a call. Even if Rogers was still hanging out with the rest of his rebel-without-a-cause pals, they wouldn't be able to cover any ground Tony wasn't already searching.

 _I don't know what to do._

As Friday and both the Stark Industries and Avengers mainframes tore through encrypted systems and hacked camera and vocal communications worldwide, Tony found himself listening to and reading every message the kid had ever left for him or for Happy.

So perky, so eager. So goddamned innocent. So beneath Tony's notice on any given day.

 _Come on, kid, send me another. Send me a thousand. I'll listen to them all, I promise. You'll sit next to me at the Oscars party - hell, we'll hold a viewing party before that and watch all the nominees in the media room so you can pick your favorite. We'll have pizza...or whatever you want._

 _What is your favorite food, anyway? Why don't I know? I should know._

Tony found himself wandering the kid's neighborhood after one of his daily visits to Aunt May. The New York Metro Area didn't know and couldn't care less, but on those few streets of Queens, Peter's picture was everywhere.

 **MISSING - KIDNAPPED - PETER BENJAMIN PARKER**

Down by Delmar's Grocery & Deli, people were leaving flowers under a huge poster that had been made, a collage of the missing child alert and other pictures of Peter. It wasn't far from the kid's place. _The owner must adore him. I bet he knows Peter Parker better than I ever will._

 _What the hell have I done?_

 _Fucking Sentinel agents should be after_ me, _not him. I want him back. Give him back!_

 _He hugged me. I almost laughed at him. Happy and me, smirking all the way back to the Tower._

 _Happy thought him hugging me was funny. I thought him driving Happy to drink was funny._

 _I want him back. I'll hug him. This time I'll really hug him._

 _I promise._

* * *

When Corporal Graydon Creed finally returned home, looking tired from a trip somewhere, Iron Man paid him a personal visit and took him on a short flight, one thousand feet straight up above his house. "Where. Is. Peter. Parker?"

"Jesus, fuck, man, put me down, we're on the same side here!"

"I'll put you _down_ all right, but whether I stay here depends on what you tell me," Tony snarled. "Where IS he?!"

"Iron Man, seriously!" the man squawked, writhing in Tony's grasp. "I don't know what you're talking about!"

"TONY!" Vision swooped in. "This is a highly inadvisable course of action."

"Either help me or shut up!" Tony shot back and returned his attention to Creed. "I'm trying to find my kid, either you tell me where he is, or I fucking drop you!"

"WHAT KID?" Creed screamed.

Vision wrapped his arms around Creed's waist and pulled. "Tony, Corporal Creed clearly does not understand your question."

 _"_ _Let Vision play good cop, Boss!"_ Friday urged. " _Creed'll tell us what he knows."_

"I swear to God," Creed wailed. "I don't know what you're talking about!"

So Tony let Vision take him, but Vision stayed airborne. "Six days ago, you removed a sixteen-year-old by the name of Peter Parker from Midtown School of Science and Technology. You took him to police headquarters for questioning in connection with mutant and enhanced activities, then transported him to Laguardia Airport, sedating him with gas along the way. Where is he?"

Creed gasped. "Oh, shit, man, I didn't realize he really did know you – look, his blood test came back as enhanced, possible mutant! That means he goes up the chain! Policy's the same for everybody – we put 'em under for transport to a secured location for more questioning – I SWEAR TO GOD, I don't know where it is!" he shrieked as Tony raised a fist. "That's the point! This whole policy is to keep mutant groups and enhanced terrorists from getting their agents back!"

"HE'S A KID!" Tony roared, trying to grab Creed back from Vision. "HE'S A FUCKING KID!"

"Stark, the guy's enhanced; I'm just doing my job!"

Vision flew back to the ground, but didn't let Creed go. "What flight number was he placed on?"

Panting, Creed flapped his arm at Vision, "I don't know! Pickup crew comes for the suspects. Once they've checked the suspect out from the car, my job's done, man! I swear, I had no idea he was one of your team!"

Tony landed behind him with a thud that made Creed practically swoon into Vision's arms. "Give me your phone."

"I can't, it's classified - "

"TOUGH SHIT!" Tony ripped it from the guy's pocket and tapped Friday in. "Decrypt, top speed. I want his supervisor. I want his supervisor's supervisor. I want the agents who did this 'pick-up' at Laguardia." He was breathing almost as hard as Creed.

 _"_ _On it, Boss._ "

Tony leaned towards Creed and purred, "I know about your little Friends of Humanity club." If possible, Creed went even whiter. He was also, quite literally, pissing himself. "If my kid is hurt, I promise you, your career will be the least of your problems."

Vision caught up with Tony at Lewis's place, and managed to prevent Tony from taking Lewis for some flight time. Lewis's story matched Creed's, and his phone wound up in Tony's suit along with Creed's. "You can't do this!" Lewis protested. "We're operating under full ICE authority, Stark! Look, if the kid was registered, I'm sorry we goofed, but this is under the full mandate of the Sokovia Accords!"

"Drugging and kidnapping teenagers was _not_ part of that treaty!" Tony shot back. He was going to kill someone very, very soon.

"It was in our enacting legislation!" Lewis insisted. "And it's not kidnapping, come on! They're suspects and public threats! That's the whole point – if you're enhanced and you don't register, then you've broken the law!"

 _ **To Be Continued...**_

 _ **Coming Soon:**_ _Tony Stark is not the only person desperately searching for kidnapped children. The X-Men and fugitive Avengers have joined forces outside the law to liberate a Sentinel Program detention center - but it's not only mutant prisoners they find!_

 **PLEASE don't forget to review!**


	4. Chapter 4

_**Author's Notes:**_ _Thank you all again for the incredible feedback! A little X-Men primer for any newbies: Storm (Ororo Munroe) can control weather around her._ _Cyclops (Scott Summers) shoots blasts of sheer force from his eyes equal to about ten kilotons of TNT. Shadowcat (Katherine "Kitty" Pryde) can phase herself through barriers along with any person or thing she's touching. Professor X (Charles Xavier) is an immensely powerful telepath who can use a focusing device called Cerebro to locate or even communicate with any person on the planet and identify other mutants. Wolverine (Logan) has almost unlimited healing and was the victim of government experiments that gave him retractable claws from indestructible alloy called adamantium. Nightcrawler (Kurt Wagner) can teleport himself and others in his arms. Hisako Ichiki is a teenaged student at Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters who can create psionic red armor around her body._

 ** _Canon_** _ **Note:**_ _Yes, I know Spider-Man's web is artificial in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. But the Sentinel agents made the same assumption that Sam did in Civil War. Also, the two Wakandan prisoners are original characters. In the comics, T'Challa was a longtime friend (and more) of Ororo Munroe, and he eventually opens a school for mutants of his own in Wakanda._

 **Chapter Four**

Tony Stark wasn't the only man desperately searching for missing children. The X-Men and the "Secret Avengers" had no way of knowing that Peter Parker had gone missing. As a rule, they stayed as far from Tony Stark's lines of communication as possible.

It was King T'Challa of Wakanda who linked the two teams, after turning to the X-Men for help when two Wakandan citizens – both mutants – disappeared while traveling abroad. They discovered a pattern of children and adults suspected of enhancements vanishing in government vehicles in multiple nations, without regard for citizenship or basic civil rights.

The Secret Avengers and the X-Men were wary of each other at first, but with T'Challa and Ororo Munroe at the center, they joined forces.

Charles Xavier located groups of mutants being gathered against their will, and the resources of Natasha Romanoff and Clint Barton identified the Sentinel Program's detention centers. Many of the locations were well outside what should have been the oversight of the United States government.

"The Raft's been repurposed," Clint reported. "The 'suspects' have been grouped by age and enhancement strength. You all are gonna love this; the majority of 'suspects' on the Raft are ages twelve to eighteen, alpha mutants with 'high hazard' manifested mutations or enhancements."

"God almighty," Steve breathed. "They're imprisoning kids?"

"By the hundreds," Natasha confirmed. "Any country that signed on to the Sokovia Accords _and_ several that didn't but allow extradition. Suspected mutants, inhumans, or 'miscellaneously enhanced' individuals of all ages are being detained and disappearing. There are holding centers in multiple locations, including supermax."

"I know that every one of these people should be freed," said T'Challa. "My priority must be to locate my own citizens, but I'll gladly help you in freeing any other prisoners in the same areas."

"We figured you'd ask," said Cyclops. "Only one of yours is on the Raft: the younger girl, Hisani. The older one, Laiken, she's in the temporary detention center in Morocco. Her mutation hasn't been deemed 'high hazard.' Most of our kids' were."

"Then I'll accompany you to the Raft," said T'Challa. "If you wish, I'll send a team for the Morocco center. If there are any American children held there, we'll bring them to you. The rest, we'll move to a country that has refused to enforce the Accords or take general punitive action against mutants."

"What countries are safe for mutants these days?" asked Scott Lang.

"There's a few. India, Belarus, Estonia, Sweden," Cyclops said. "Those are just the ones I recall off the top of my head. There're several African nations, Ethiopia, Zimbabwe, a few others – oh, Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay, Indonesia."

"There are others," T'Challa confirmed. "Like Wakanda, there are nations now questioning what the Accords are bringing about. Ireland, Costa Rica, and Kenya are preparing to withdraw from the Accords and expelled all enforcement personnel from foreign nations in the past few weeks. Detainees in those nations have been released."

"We'll need a large team to get that many kids out of the Raft," said Cyclops. "Especially manifested kids. Powers can go crazy when a kid panics, and being held against their will in a large group is a damn easy way to make someone panic."

"I know, believe me," said Wanda. "I'll go with you, if you can use me. I think I can…calm down some of them, at least so they aren't a danger to themselves or anyone else during the evacuation."

"The guard complement is now twelve times what it was when you were there," said Bucky, poring over the Raft's hacked manifest. "More heavily armed, and general order is to use deadly force for any unauthorized entry or attempts to escape. They've reported eleven fatalities among the prisoners since this program started last year."

"So I guess that means trying to reason with the U.S. government is off the table?" said Sam. Some of the X-Men looked appalled, but most of the Secret Avengers just smiled grimly. They knew Sam was joking. "My wings won't be much good inside, but I've got some medical and rescue training. I'm yours if you want me."

"We'll take every damn one of you who's willing to help," said Cyclops. "At capacity, that place could be holding as many as a hundred. Corralling that many scared kids is gonna be a big job."

"There's space on the landing facilities for two long-haul choppers, a small jet with VTOL capability, and two or three smaller choppers," Bucky said. "There's only two small passenger choppers on site at any one time, capable of reaching the eastern US, but that's it. Still, that's close enough to get to your school if we can avoid them being tracked." He stiffened at something in the data, and Steve leaned toward him.

"Buck? What else?"

The look in Bucky's eyes…even some of the X-Men took a step back when he looked up. He spoke in a low, hard voice. "In the ward where they had you four…the cells have all been sealed for solitary confinement, but…something else. 'Special protocol.' No explanation given for what that means, but they've pumped extra power into those five cells. Way more than they'd need for prisoners in solitary or even extra security."

"What are we looking at? Sedation?" asked Clint. "Cryo?"

Bucky shook his head. "Cryo wouldn't account for these modifications, and sedation damn well wouldn't. Some of this…there's a lot of current going in there. Also…they installed multiple light sources and high-amp speakers."

"God _damn it_!" Sam wrenched away from the table as he realized what that had to mean. " _Fuck!_ "

"You've never seen this kind of treatment by your own country before?" Ororo Munroe asked the Avengers quietly. All of them except for Bucky and Natasha shook their heads. "Well, we have. Long before the Sokovia Accords were enacted, we found mutant children and adults in situations like this, in the hands of their own governments. Certain factions in the U.S. military have been trying for decades to 'condition' enhanced agents. Alpha mutants were an easy target, the younger the better. We've had dozens of students at this school who survived that kind of torture."

"We're with you," Steve said. His voice was a little rough, but he knew no one would care. "On the Raft and every site after. This stops, one way or another."

The rest of the team nodded. Ororo looked at T'Challa, and he nodded as well.

Cyclops leaned forward. "Then let's get to work. We've got some serious plans to make."

* * *

A few days later, the combined forces of the X-Men and Secret Avengers breached the Raft. The resistance they met was well beyond what Captain America had encountered when he rescued his four teammates. Even so, the Raft's guards, as well-armed and well-trained as they were, were completely unprepared for over twenty attackers, all either alpha mutants or Avengers, coming through every entry when they _thought_ the Raft was still submerged.

Fighting raged through the corridors, but soon guards found themselves occupying the cells that had previously held their prisoners. The rescue team led dazed, terrified teenagers back up to the landing pad for evacuation.

"This place is way the hell over capacity! We don't have enough transports unless we make multiple trips," Cyclops warned only a few minutes in. "Damn. Nightcrawler, start evacuating them straight to the school!"

T'Challa found Hisani, his seventeen-year-old citizen, packed with a group into a cell that had been meant to hold only one individual at a time. She recognized Wakanda's Black Panther and threw herself at him, sobbing. With his reassurances, she calmed down, and helped reassure her fellows that rescue had arrived.

Wanda, Bucky, and Steve accompanied Cyclops, Wolverine, and Shadowcat to the "special protocol" ward to find out what had been happening to those five kids.

"All five cells are occupied. They're blasting noise in on those kids and modulating the lights, keeping 'em awake," Wolverine snarled.

"Turn it off. Turn all of it off!" Steve ordered.

Wanda and Bucky hauled a jabbering guard in and forced him to enter the proper codes and authorizations. "Bastard," Wolverine spat, and clubbed him unconscious.

"Be careful!" Cyclops exclaimed when Steve and Bucky would've just started yanking the doors open. "These are alpha mutants, Cap, and they've been tortured. They could lash out. They don't know us."

"Okay." Wanda went from cell to cell, pressing her hands to the doors. At the third cell, she gasped. "This girl…she's one of yours! She remembers the school!"

"Damn it. Kitty, get in there." Shadowcat went through the cell wall to calm the girl down, bringing Wanda with her.

"We need to keep working," Bucky muttered, and he and Steve moved on to the next cell. The locks were heavy, but not enough to withstand Steve's shield _or_ Bucky's vibranium arm now that the power was out.

Steve glanced back to see Kitty and Wanda emerging from the other cell, supporting a staggering girl between them. "Hisako Ichiki! Oh, hell, we didn't even know she was missing!" Wolverine exclaimed, rushing forward. The girl flinched, and he knelt in front of her. "Hey, Shiny Red, it's me! You remember me?"

"L-Logan?" With a violent shudder, Hisako collapsed into his arms, sobbing and shivering. The second kid to emerge from a cell in Cyclops' arms took in the scene and started crying too.

"I had to phase her out of those wall shackles," Kitty reported. "I dunno what they're made of, but it's powerful."

"I can blast them open," said Cyclops, and set the boy on the floor next to Logan and Hisako. Then he returned to blasting off the next doors.

Bucky ripped another cell's door off its hinges, and went inside. Steve started after him, but thought better of it, not wanting to overwhelm the kid inside. The kid, a boy from the sound of it, started pleading weakly. "P-please," he rasped. "Mizz'r Sstarg…T'ny Star…call…"

The words barely registered to Steve as he worked on the next cell, but in a few seconds, Bucky blurted out, "Wanda, Steve, get over here!"

Steve spun around, and he and Wanda ran to Bucky's side. This was the first clear look Steve got at one of these "special program" victims. The boy was shackled to the wall by each individual hand and foot. The lights in the room were glaring, and had probably been constantly modulating just to keep the kid from getting used to it. Bombardment of light, noise, and a position that wouldn't let him sleep…this went far beyond registration or even internment. Steve doubted it was even sadism alone, though that had to have played a role.

The boy was twitching helplessly, his cheeks hollow from starvation, his skin slack, either from dehydration or drugs or a combination thereof. He kept mumbling, begging, and Bucky had knelt next to him. Bucky looked back at Steve. "It's Spider-Man."

" _What?!_ " Steve took a step back. "No," he breathed. "No, that's not possible. Tony Stark would never…no matter what…he'd never allow this."

The boy choked out, "Please…call 'im…I know Miss'r Stark…"

"I know that voice," Bucky whispered. He put a hand on the boy's chest. "Hey…kid, you're okay now. We're getting you out of here."

"It's too bright," said Wanda, and scrambled to dim the lights. With that done, the boy opened gummy eyes and squinted at them, and…fixated immediately on Bucky's arm.

 _Oh my God, he recognizes Bucky._

"Winner S-soldier? Wha-"

Bucky reached past him with his metal arm, the kid watching it, and began wrestling with the shackles. Steve tried to smash them open with his shield, to no avail, and said, "Is it my imagination, or are these shackles made of vibranium?"

"My adamantium's not cutting through them either, so it must be," called Wolverine from another cell.

"Hang on!" Cyclops came running in and methodically blasted the shackles open…but they found that this boy had some extra "safety measure" on his wrists. Thick metal cuffs, unconnected to the shackles and chains, circled his wrists from halfway up the forearm to cover most of his hands to the fingers.

"Steve…the kid had web, remember? From his wrists," Bucky said softly.

"Damn it. They're on him too tight for me to risk blasting 'em; it'll have to wait," said Cyclops. "We figured Spider-Man might be a mutant."

"His name's Peter," said Wanda. "Peter Parker." The kid twitched at the sound of his name.

Steve's hand went to his pocket where even on missions, he carried his burner phone. "Hey!" Wolverine exclaimed. "Rogers, is that really a good idea?"

"No way does Tony know about this place," said Steve. "Even at…his worst, he'd never…not this kid. Not any kid."

Cyclops' lips thinned. "Look, Cap, I'm not gonna stop you, but maybe we should evacuate first, call later? Stark can wait a few hours."

Steve's mind raced. Maybe it was foolish, but what struck him was, _I held back once, something I should've told him. Maybe if I hadn't, we'd still be a full team, and we could've prevented all this._ Steve tapped his comm. "Romanoff, if I send a call now, is it traceable here?"

" _No, it'll bounce around the globe. Why? We've got full link to base, who're you…oh, Steve, come on, what could possibly warrant calling Stark now?"_

"Damn, she's good," muttered Wolverine.

"That kid Stark recruited for Leipzig. Spider-Man. He's in here, and I can't believe for one second that Tony knows."

There was a long silence on the comm. _"Hell. Okay, if Stark comes, tell him to bring a chopper. We need more transports for these kids."_

Bucky helped Spider-Man – _Peter_ – shift off the bed, but the kid couldn't even support his own weight. Bucky shrugged off his mumbled apologies and scooped him up.

Steve turned his attention to the other cells, and between the group of them, they soon had another girl and another boy out of their shackles. Cyclops saw Steve pull out the phone, but didn't try to stop him.

Steve's heart hammered over all the noise in his ears as he listened to the ring tone. _Come on, Tony…come on, answer…please, please answer…_

Tony did answer. " _Rogers, this better be good, I'm kinda busy - "_

Steve blurted, "Tony, I've found Spider-Man!"

There was a loud THUD on the other end. "… _what?! What – where?! Fuck, SHIT, Steve, where, he's been missing ten days - for Chrissakes, where?!"_

"Tony, listen to me…" Steve gulped, said a silent prayer, and came straight out with it. "The Raft, it's full of kids! Ages twelve to eighteen, mutants, and we found your kid too. He's asking for you – Tony, he needs help, it's bad! We need another chopper; there's over two hundred kids in here!"

With all the noise in the Raft, Steve couldn't make out whether Tony said or did anything for several heartbeats. And then, " _Hang on. I'll bring two choppers, self-piloted. Vision's on his way now at top speed. We'll help you shut it down. I'll be there as fast as I can._ "

By the time Steve closed the phone, Bucky was carrying Spider-Man – _Peter, his name's Peter, and he's just a kid!_ – out of the cell. The poor boy was too groggy and confused to do anything but hold on at first. After they gathered the five kids on the floor, Steve, Scott, Logan took the remaining girl and boys, and Wanda and Kitty took Hisako between them. However, when Bucky reached for Peter again, the boy recoiled with a panicky yell.

"Hey!" Bucky knelt in front of him. "Kid. Look at me. I'm here to get you out. I'm not gonna hurt you."

"You're – Winner Soldier," the kid slurred.

Steve winced, wondering if he should switch kids with Bucky, but Bucky waved him on. "Go, Steve. Just go. We've called Tony Stark. He's on his way. We're getting you all out of here."

The kid doubled forward with a sob, and Bucky caught him and lifted him. Satisfied, they started heading back for the rendezvous on the landing pad, with Steve taking point and Bucky bringing up the rear.

By the time they were coming up the first stairs with no resistance, Steve's heart had started slowing down – then shots rang out below him.

"BUCK!"

 _ **To Be Continued...**_

 _ **Coming Soon:**_ _After Bucky and Peter are cut off by the Raft's guards, we return to Peter's POV until Tony arrives and discovers what the "lawful authorities" have been doing under the auspices of the Sokovia Accords._

 **PLEASE don't forget to review!**


	5. Chapter 5

_**Author's Notes:**_ _Wow, I'm once again blown away by the response this story has received! FYI, if some (or all) of our adult heroes seem a little out of character in this and the upcoming chapters, remember, they're all in major crisis mode and experiencing very intense emotions. For some people, that means they shut down. Others lash out. Even an enhanced teenager like Peter is going to break down after ten days of torture, starvation, and drugging._

 **Chapter Five**

Bucky felt the kid tense even before the shooting started, and he leapt off the stairs. He grabbed his handgun and opened fire while balancing the kid against him on one arm. But the guards knew he was trying to escape that level and forced him to retreat. Holstering the gun, he pulled the kid tight against his chest, shielding his head with his metal arm, and ran. "I'm cut off from the stairs!" he grunted, ducking back through the secure ward. "My kid's okay, looking for another exit!"

" _Barnes, the third level's clear! Any stairs'll get you there!"_ said Romanoff.

The kid - Parker - mumbled into Bucky's neck. "Easy, quiet," Bucky muttered, shifting him again to draw his handguns. "You're okay." _For a given value of okay, anyway._ "Can you stand for a second?" He needed to make sure the next stairwell was clear.

"Uh-huh," Parker gasped, but when Bucky put him down, his legs wouldn't hold him. "No - sorry, sorry!"

"It's all right," Bucky sighed and reloaded both guns. He'd gone one-armed before, he could do it again. He scooped the kid back up with his right arm, wrangling to get as much of the boy's head and torso against his own body as possible.

 _"_ Incoming!" Parker croaked out, and Bucky launched himself for the nearest exit. A slug caught him in the flesh of his leg; he swore and stumbled, but kept running, firing over his shoulder until his first gun was out of ammunition.

They tumbled into the nearest corridor, but it most definitely wasn't clear, and he was under fire from _two_ directions. "Shit - pinned down!" he snapped and wrapped himself around the kid, leaping for an empty guard's niche, pushing Parker down into it. He thinned out a few of the guards, then his gun clicked empty. _Fuck._ "Out of ammo!" He shoved his right side against the kid and tried to block their heads and necks with his metal arm.

 _"Hang on, Bucky, we've got reinforcements!_ "

 _"We've got incoming - holy shit, it's Iron Man and Vision!_ "

* * *

The world around Peter was a blur of blinding strobe lights and painful noise. He huddled against the Winter Soldier's broad chest like a baby, too weak and too dizzy to do a damn bit of good. He was beaten. Spider-Man was beaten, defeated, and dependent on the protection of the Winter Soldier, who'd murdered Mr. Stark's parents in cold blood. Peter'd been dragged out of school and locked up by his own government, and nobody cared that he'd been trying to do good. Now, God knew how many hours or days later, here he was, too weak to even stand without help, and the Winter Soldier was shielding him from bullets fired by guys who spoke English and sounded just like Peter.

Amid the chaotic roar of gunfire and shriek of damaged metal, a closer sound caught Peter's attention: the Winter Soldier grunted, and let out soft gasps of pain. And Peter knew, "Y-you're hit," he breathed.

"Quiet," the Soldier mumbled. But he was suddenly heavy against Peter, and Peter couldn't hold back his weight.

As the Soldier pressed him to the floor, Peter realized the guns had gone silent. He slumped where he was and whispered, "You okay?"

No answer, just ragged breathing. Then, a stifled moan.

The Winter Soldier was hurt. He was hurt bad, and Peter realized he must've taken a bullet, maybe more than one. For Peter - _why?_ The last time they'd seen each other, they'd been fighting! Why the hell would he do this?

"Peter?"

Peter peered over the Soldier's shoulder and nearly sobbed in relief to see a blurry-but-familiar form float down from the ceiling. "Vision! Help! Oh, shit, please, help, he's hurt!"

The Soldier moaned again as Vision pulled him into sitting position, and Peter saw his face. The Soldier was barely conscious, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth, eyes glassy with pain and shock. "Sergeant Barnes," said Vision. "Can you hear me?"

The Soldier shoved at Peter weakly with his metal arm. "Get 'im outta here," he croaked, and doubled over. "Just go."

"No!" Peter grabbed for him. The Soldier hissed in pain - _no. Not "The Soldier." His name's Bucky Barnes, and he's a person, and he just saved my life._ "Please," he gasped at Vision. "Please, he needs a doctor!"

"Bucky!?" Captain America thumped into view, his boots pounding the metal floor hard enough to make Peter's teeth rattle. He crashed to his knees beside Vision and pulled Barnes toward him. "What happened?"

"He saved me," Peter whispered. His throat was closing, his heart was hammering, and he couldn't catch his breath. What if Barnes died?! There was blood everywhere... behind Captain America came Iron Man.

What would Mr. Stark think, seeing Peter trying to hang onto the guy Mr. Stark had vowed to kill?

Panic swept through Peter in waves, blinding away exhaustion and fear of anything else except that Mr. Stark wouldn't understand. "They were shooting, an' he saved me..."

"Sergeant Barnes was carrying young Peter to the rendezvous where the rest of the victims are being assembled," said Vision, turning to Iron Man. "They came under fire from the remaining guards, and Sergeant Barnes shielded Peter with his own body. I've identified four places that his armor was penetrated, the most severe being under the left shoulder. He needs medical attention immediately."

The world pitched and heaved, blurring in and out of focus, and all Peter could focus on was Mr. Stark, imagining his face as hard and expressionless as the outside of the Iron Man helmet looked. "Please," he begged. "Please, he didn'...please, he can't die..." _Not for me, not like this._ "Misser Stark - " His tongue was too swollen and clumsy to talk, but he couldn't stop. "Please, don' kill 'im."

Mr. Stark's silence seemed to go on forever. Captain America eased his friend back against his chest, murmuring in his ear, and Barnes looked at him and...smiled. There was something soft about it, a fond expression Peter never would've imagined from the Winter Soldier. Barnes whispered something, and Captain America tightened his grip. "Don't you dare, Buck."

"Please don' die," Peter pleaded.

Peter had once thought he was nothing without his suit. But now here he was, not Spider-Man, just some stupid kid, an inmate in blue scrubs who couldn't even stand up, and he'd give anything, _anything_ if somebody'd just save Bucky Barnes, Mr. Stark's most deadly enemy.

Mr. Stark had warned him that one day there'd be somebody he couldn't save, not realizing that Peter had seen Uncle Ben die.

Peter couldn't handle the thought that the next person he'd watch die would be somebody who'd saved his life. Who didn't even care that Peter'd been his enemy too.

It was Vision who broke the spell that'd fallen over everyone. He turned away from Iron Man to Captain America and his friend. "I'll take him to the compound. I'm in contact with Helen Cho. She'll perform emergency surgery." He beckoned to Captain America, who slipped an arm around Barnes' waist, getting a gasp of pain, and lifted him under the knees.

Then Vision reached for Peter, and finally, Mr. Stark spoke up. "No." Captain America looked stricken, Barnes looked resigned, but Iron Man moved past them both even as Peter cried out, babbled pleas and completely incoherent arguments, and...took Peter in his arms. "I'll carry him." He jerked his head towards Vision. "Fine. Get going. Take Rogers with you so his buddy doesn't flip out. I'll bring the kid."

As Iron Man picked him up like any useless civilian, Peter broke. He held on to the hard metal shoulders and just cried.

Mr. Stark didn't say anything.

* * *

Wanda must have met up with Vision, Barnes, and Rogers, because there was blood on her when she met Tony on the way to the landing pad. She didn't seem to notice it, just wiped her hands on her clothes when she saw Tony carrying Peter and hurried to meet them.

She didn't even seem to care about the last time she and Tony had seen each other, just focused on the boy in Tony's arms. "How bad is he?"

"Not sure," said Tony, as clinical as one of his AI's. It was as if somebody's flipped a switch and turned all his emotions off, and left him completely dispassionate about almost two hundred terrified kids, the Winter fucking Soldier, all the blood, and Peter starved, shaking, and sobbing himself into a stupor in Tony's arms. "He's in better shape than an ordinary human would be by now, but he's enhanced. Distress, though." _No shit, Sherlock!_ "Friday's getting his vitals all over the place."

"They were sleep depriving him," said Wanda, her eyes flashing red and furious. "Separate from the others; he was getting 'special attention', along with the four mutants his age. They had some idea of using these powerful ones for something more. They needed to break them first."

Tony's heart barely skipped. "Where's Wilson?"

"He's gone with Steve and Vision. T'Challa and the X-Men are working out how to transport the children out." Tony did jump at the loud _BAMF!_ sound nearby as a devilish-looking mutant materialized along the wall, but Wanda caught his arm. "He's from their school. He's moving some of them directly - teleporting."

On the floor near the control room, several children lay motionless. "Injured?" Tony asked.

"Sedated," said Wanda. "They were panicking, and their powers, they couldn't control it. I helped. Ororo says they can keep them from hurting themselves - or anyone else - at their school. They'll take them in the jet."

"We could use you, though, on the trip," said a red-haired woman to Wanda. She glanced up as she knelt in front of a shivering, stick-thin preteen, and Tony placed her: Dr. Jean Grey. "Keeping everyone under control for a flight will be a challenge."

Wanda hesitated and looked around. From the corridor came Barton and Wolverine, dusting themselves off. "All the guards are secure and down for the count. None of 'em will be able to interfere with the evac," said Barton.

"Can you fly one of the Raft's choppers?" asked Cyclops. "That'll give us another vehicle to transport the kids."

"You've got two more choppers coming in," said Tony. "Self-piloted. They can carry about ten passengers, and I'll set their return destination. Where to?"

Cyclops and Barton exchanged a long look, then Cyclops nodded. "I'll give you coordinates."

"I will take my long haul helicopter to Wakanda," said T'Challa. "And as many of the non-American children as we can fit. They'll be safe."

The German teleporter mutant kept bamfing in and out, scooping one or two kids into his arms - but never without making sure said kids were okay with it. "That should do it," said Tony, doing a quick headcount. "Better to get everybody out in one trip."

Peter mumbled something unintelligible at Tony. _"He's completely out of it, Boss,"_ Friday informed him.

"That little chopper on-site, how many can we take?"

" _In the last chopper here at the Raft, not many. Two or three including Peter_."

"Got it. I can fit one or two more," Tony told the group.

X-Men and fugitive Avengers exchanged glances. "And what happens to 'em when you land?" asked Barton.

It barely stung. "I find their families and/or get them out of the country and into hiding," Tony retorted. "I'm not gonna get them out of this hellhole just to chuck 'em into another one."

"Keep them at your compound," said Cyclops. "We'll send Kurt for them and bring them to the school once the evacuation is finished."

"Deal."

"Let's go!"

In the end, they got all rest of the kids into the choppers and the X-Men's plane without Tony having to take anyone other than Peter. Wanda went with the X-Men and the most distraught kids to keep them calm for the flight.

It was a tight fit for Tony in his armor and Peter in the smallest of the helicopters on the base, clearly meant to carry a pilot and a few passengers, no more. Tony broke out the armrests and cup-holders between the passenger seats and laid Peter down on them, then had Friday detect and disable all the tracking devices on board.

Peter whimpered and twitched as the chopper took off. "It's all right, kid," Tony said, folding back the helmet visor. "It's all right. Just get some sleep."

As Tony watched through the rear-view, the kid made an effort to relax, but kept startling awake and staring around him with bloodshot, terrified eyes. He quickly lost count of the number of times he repeated, "It's okay. You're okay." Sometimes he reached back and patted the kid - more than once, Peter grabbed Tony's armored hand and refused to let go.

Once Peter seemed to have drifted off, Tony murmured to Friday, "Tell Happy to get his aunt to the compound, ASAP."

" _On it. Should he give her a heads-up of what's happened so she doesn't have a coronary? Laddie doesn't look so good_."

"Damn. Yeah, tell him to try to ease her into it." By rights, Tony knew that job should fall to himself, but he didn't want to have a conversation like that with the kid only half-asleep in the back seat. "What do you make of those gauntlets on his hands?"

" _The whole get-up was designed to keep him from using his web. They must have thought it was organic to his body. The metal was welded shut directly over his wrists and sealed into place with some kind of industrial strength adhesive. I'm detecting burns underneath, boss. They obviously didn't care whether they crippled his hands in the process."_

"Sons of bitches."

* * *

Happy got a medical suite set up for the kid in the compound's infirmary (and let Tony know that Vision had set Barnes up in Dr. Cho's lab), and was off collecting May Parker when Tony arrived. Maria Hill appeared with a few of Pepper's staff when they landed the chopper.

Tony carried the kid himself. Peter was completely out of it and barely aware when Tony slipped his ironclad arms under him and lifted him from the back seat of the chopper. Pepper was standing next to Hill as he carried Peter into the infirmary. Her mouth opened and her eyes welled, and even Hill looked speechless at the sight of the too-skinny, half-conscious kid slumped across Tony's arms.

"What happened," Pepper finally breathed as Tony silently laid the kid on the bed and stepped back so the medics could look at him. "Who did this to him - who had him?"

"Us," Tony muttered. Pepper blinked. "Uncle Sam, the US government. Land of the free, home of the brave. Good patriotic American servicemen raided the hotbeds of terrorist activity called high schools and took these highly dangerous suspects into custody in an offshore prison. Some of 'em as old as eighteen. Look at this one, you can just tell he's America's most wanted."

Peter could only manage to answer about a third of the medics' questions, but his murmur of "thirsty," broke Pepper out of her trance. She shoved past Tony, and returned with a glass of tap water from the nearest bathroom.

"Easy, easy, son, don't chug. You'll throw it up," the doctor cautioned.

Pepper sat on the edge of the bed and kept a hand on the glass, since the kid was having trouble holding onto it past the metal cuffs fused to his hands. Another time, another place, Peter'd have been excited and intimidated as hell to meet Pepper Potts. Now he couldn't concentrate on anything but water.

A few minutes later, one of the staff came in with a cart loaded with huge pitchers of water and an array of finger foods. The doctor reluctantly shook his head at her. "Nothing solid, sorry. I need him on IV nutrition and non-solids for at least twenty-four hours.

"'s okay, 'm not hungry anyway," Peter murmured, his head lolling to the side.

Pepper patted his back. "Your mom's on the way. My driver's bringing her straight here," she told him.

"Mom?"

"Aunt May," Tony clarified, but Peter lurched awake.

"No! No, please!"

"What?" Tony blurted.

Peter curled up away from them as Pepper and the doctor struggled to calm him down. "Sweetie, it's okay!" Pepper insisted.

"Your aunt's gotta be frantic!"

"Please...Mizzer Stark, please," Peter twisted and looked wildly at Tony with red, sunken eyes. "Please, I don' wan' her to see me like this!" He choked on a sob, and Tony's heart landed somewhere in the boots of his suit.

Pepper glared at Tony as if it was his fault. _Well, she's right. I brought this kid into the big leagues. I may not've enhanced his body, but I gave him the suits. And I didn't make him register._

He wondered what Pepper had guesstimated when he'd told her Spider-Man was on the young side. _"Where's the kid?!"_ Pepper had said. Tony'd called him a kid, to ease her into the idea, but she'd jumped on it readily enough after seeing vids of Spider-Man in combat.

 _What did she assume? Eighteen? Nineteen? Wanda's age? Seventeen and a half?_ This was the first time she'd seen his face. Hell, in this condition, Peter looked like he belonged in middle school rather than high school.

So Tony Stark had no damn excuse for backing off now that it had all blown up in the kid's face. Peter was sixteen. _Sixteen, you stupid, selfish, cradle-robbing bastard. You had him fighting supervillains before he had a driver's license._ He made himself shuck the suit and step out of it, moving closer to Peter. "Sorry, kid, I know this is awkward." Hill made a noise of disgust behind him. "But Aunt May's not gonna be able to handle being kept away from you. She's been losing her mind for ten days. This isn't your fault. She's not gonna be mad." _Not at you, anyway._ "She'll just be glad to find you okay."

He was right on that point, at least. May Parker announced her arrival with running footsteps echoing on the marble floors and probably would've bowled people over if everyone hadn't gotten out of her way. When she came through the suite door and saw Peter, her legs buckled. If Happy hadn't caught her, she might have wound up on the floor.

Peter squinted at her, trying to smile and look more alert, but failed miserably at both. Aunt May rallied herself and seemed almost calm as she sat on the edge of the bed and leaned down to wrap her arms around him. "Thank God. Thank God," she breathed into his hair.

"'m sorry, May..."

"Shhh. Peter, don't worry about anything now, I'm just so glad to see you." She shot a wild look at the bystanders before zeroing in on the medics. "What's happened to him? How badly is he hurt?"

"He's going to be fine, ma'am," said the doctor gently. "He just needs rest and recovery, nutrition and hydration, and we have to get those - those _things_ off his hands and probably put something on them, but he _will_ be okay."

"You'll both stay here," Tony heard himself say. "I've got doctors, guards, twenty-four-seven."

May kissed Peter's forehead as he struggled to focus, but there were daggers in her eyes for Tony. He knew that only the kid's presence was keeping her from going Exorcist on his ass. Not that he had any business blaming her for when she eventually did. "Is there nowhere else we can go?" she asked.

Hill stepped in. "The people who did this are...at large, ma'am. I understand you've got some serious concerns, but in this compound, your nephew is safer than anywhere else, and Stark has the resources to get him treated."

"'m sorry, 'm sorry," Peter moaned.

"It's all right," she repeated, running her fingers through his hair. Then she put her hand on one of the metal gauntlets encasing his forearms and turned a little green.

"We'll get rid of those," the doctor assured her. "We're just figuring out the easiest way on him."

Locking eyes with Tony again, May eased away from Peter. "Go to sleep. I'm not going anywhere, just stepping outside."

"'s nod Mss'r Stark's fault... May, 's not, I knew what I was doin', I swear, don' be mad attim..."

So even sleep deprived out of his mind, Peter Parker knew that shit was about to rain down on his benefactor's head in biblical proportions. Tony forced a smile and dared a few steps closer. "Don't worry about me, kid, I'm a grown-up. You get some sleep."

"Can't...please..." Peter tried to squirm away from the medics, and they might've had a struggle on their hands if the intruder alarm hadn't gone off.

 _"Boss, unauthorized landing!_ " Friday warned in Tony's ear.

Pepper shot to her feet, and Tony, Happy, and Hill were already moving. "Don't any of you leave this room," Tony ordered, and his suit sprang back to life outside the door, waiting for him to step inside. "Seal off the medical suites and put us on - "

 _"Boss, hold on! I've got IDs on both - it's Wanda Maximoff and Nightcrawler from the X-Men. He teleported them onto the landing pad."_

"Hold positions!" Tony announced, once they had the infirmary door shut. At every entrance, Stark Security were moving into position to defend personnel and visitors, but now they'd wait for Tony to assess the threat. Next to him, Hill and Happy each had hands on their weapons, and Pepper had frozen with her hand over her Starkpad, ready to give the order to evacuate or shelter in place or whatever else they decided.

Whatever shit had stormed between them all in the past few years, they still made a good team. In Dr. Cho's lab, Vision, Rogers, and Wilson had taken up defensive positions outside the surgery room.

Back inside his suit, Tony called up the camera feeds for the landing pad. Sure enough, it was Wanda, wisely standing with her hands visible and urging the blue mutant to do the same, letting the cameras get a look at them. _"Boss, just a reminder, some of the X-Men can shapeshift,_ " Friday warned.

Tony activated the external speaker on the landing pad. "Hey, Wanda."

" _Stark_ ," she said steadily.

"Remind me, which of us did you _not_ manage to mindfuck in South Africa?"

Wanda hesitated, then caught on and answered, " _Hawkeye. He got me in the head with an electric arrow. I've come from the school. Everyone's arrived safe. This is Kurt Wagner; he isn't hostile_."

" _I've just come to see if anyone needs a lift_ ," said Wagner. " _I mean no harm_."

 _"They're clean, boss,"_ said Friday. " _No weapons._ "

"Okay. Everybody stand down," Tony announced, and the all-clear sounded gently throughout the compound. He shed the suit again and gave the doctor a thumbs-up.

" _Miss Maximoff wants to see Sergeant Barnes,"_ said Friday.

"Fine. Let her into Cho's lab. Let me know if blue guy wanders off."

Aunt May waited until Peter nodded off again, then left his bedside and came very slowly out of the medical suite, watching Tony as if he were an unpredictable and possibly-rabid animal. _Nah, I'm just the guy who completely fucked up her nephew._

For several beats they just stared at each other. Pepper, Happy, and Hill just watched. May took a deep breath, jaw clenched, in a way that said how hard she was fighting to keep a grip on her temper. She spoke in a low, measured voice. "You obviously thought I was so completely blinded by a famous billionaire paying so much personal attention to my nephew that I wouldn't ask any questions."

Pepper and Happy winced. Tony braced himself to keep from leaning away, as if her rage were a physical blast of heat. "I know you're upset."

"Like hell you do," she breathed. "I've known for months there was no 'internship'. He would have talked about it nonstop if that line you handed me last year were true. I _knew_ you were grooming him for _something_. The only question was what, and whether I should call the fucking FBI."

 _Fuck._

"What you're implying isn't true either, ma'am," Happy dared to chime in.

She ignored Happy. "I really should imply _that,_ shouldn't I? That would get you and your cronies away from him for good."

 _Fuuuuuck._ "You...you know I didn't..."

"Go to hell," May growled. "I don't know _what_ you've been doing with him, but the secret police would never have noticed he existed without your involvement." She tilted her head, undoubtedly pondering every interaction she'd seen or heard of between Tony and Peter, and every secretive activity Peter'd ever been up to.

And she proved that daunting intelligence was probably a Parker family trait.

"Spider-Man," Aunt May concluded. Pepper stiffened, then looked from Tony to Happy then back to Tony and glowered. May finished, "Last year it was a back-page story about a would-be superhero in a sweat suit, stopping car accidents and chasing down muggers. I didn't connect it with Peter, even though he didn't spend nearly enough time in gym to be as fit as he is, and his eyesight miraculously fixed itself. I only noticed the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man because Peter was always looking him up online. Now Spider-Man's teamed up with Iron Man, wearing high-tech gear, going into battle against maniacs and even other Avengers, and I find out it's my boy only _after_ federal agents drag him out of class and make him disappear!"

"He...didn't want you to know," Tony mumbled.

"He's. Six. Teen. It was _not_ your decision, and it was not _his_ decision either," May hissed. "Don't you dare try to justify this to me or I swear to God, you'll need your iron suit to stop me from taking off your face!"

Tony groped around for some kind of justification that wouldn't involve having to call his armor in self-defense, but then the medic called out, "Ma'am?" and Peter's weak voice drifted out of the room.

"Aun' May?"

She spun away from Tony and ran back in. "Peter, you need to get some sleep!"

Tony wasn't close enough to make out exactly what the kid was saying - or maybe what the kid was saying was just that incoherent, but the gist of it was...Peter was defending Tony. Happy slipped closer to Tony and said quietly, "Boss...we _really_ fucked up."

Pepper leaned toward them and hissed, "You _think?_ "

 _ **To Be Continued...**_

 _ **Coming Soon:**_ _Medical treatment gets complicated when an enhanced patient panics, and Bucky Barnes doesn't react well to Dr. Cho's regeneration cradle. On top of that, an already-distressed Tony still wants his reckoning with the former Winter Soldier._

 **PLEASE don't forget to review!**


	6. Chapter 6

_**Author's Notes:**_ _Many thanks to all for your incredible feedback! It means the world to me; please keep it coming! For this fic's purposes, Bucky is now cured of Hydra's mental conditioning as Wakandan scientists (with the help of Wanda's mental power) were able to undo it. However, he's not cured of PTSD (neither is anybody else in this fic, for that matter.)_

 **Chapter Six**

To Wanda's relief, Bucky was calm through surgery, even though Dr. Cho's strongest painkiller didn't numb him like it should have. He endured getting bullets dug out of his flesh past his healing factor with barely a sound. Wanda could block the pain, but not Bucky's awareness that he was going under the knife unless she knocked him out, which Bucky wouldn't allow.

But when they tried to get Bucky to lie down in the regeneration cradle, he panicked and almost threw Dr. Cho into the wall.

"Buck, look at me! Look at me!" Steve exclaimed. "We're not gonna close it. It's okay!"

Bucky just struggled blindly, eyes wild and terrified. Sam pulled Dr. Cho back and said, "That cradle looks too much like what Hydra stuck him in for cryo."

Wanda brushed past them. "Let me help." She caught a wild swing of Bucky's metal arm with her power while Steve wrapped his arms around Bucky from the right. Her mental power, she kept as gentle as she could. She'd seen the agony and terror that Hydra had inflicted on Bucky Barnes' mind and memories, and she wouldn't ever add to that if she could help it.

Bucky gasped in surprise as her power flowed through his mind, soothing, reinforcing what Steve was trying to say out loud: _It's okay. You're safe. No one's going to hurt you. Just relax. You're not with Hydra. Just breathe._

Bucky slumped against Steve, and reason returned to his eyes. "Are you okay?" Wanda asked.

"I..." Bucky shook his head and shuddered. "I'm..." He'd let Wanda use her power to help him before, but in the grip of the worst flashbacks (like right now) it still wasn't easy to get him back to reality. "Where...?"

"You're in Avengers headquarters - " Dr. Cho began, then cringed as Steve, Sam, Wanda, and even Vision winced, and Bucky recoiled. "It's okay," she said urgently. Of course, she knew about Stark's parents and the manhunt that Stark had spearheaded ever since Siberia - the whole damned world knew about it. Stark hadn't hesitated to announce it to every media outlet in existence. "Tony Stark won't interfere, not with me. You're my patient, and I want to get you healed, that's all." She put her hand inside the cradle, near Bucky's feet. "This isn't to...it speeds up regeneration of wounds," she explained. "For a normal person, this could heal those gunshots so you don't need stitches in a half-hour. For someone like you who's had the serum, it's probably even less. But we don't have to do it," she said, raising her hands to him. "If you don't want to, I won't force you."

Bucky shivered, even though the air in the cradle was warm. Near the window, Kurt Wagner watched the whole exchange with dismay and tried his best to be invisible.

Steve sighed. "I don't suppose it'll work without closing it?"

Reluctantly, Dr. Cho shook her head. "It's up to you."

Bucky freed his flesh hand from Steve's and rubbed his eyes. "Sorry," he muttered.

"None necessary," Dr. Cho assured him.

Wanda pressed, "She's telling the truth. She won't hurt you, and she won't let anyone else hurt you while you're in her care."

"Nor will I," Vision confirmed. Bucky blinked wearily at him. "Even if Mr. Stark wishes to take you into custody, he may not do so while you're receiving medical care. Nor does he have a right to harm you."

Bucky gave Dr. Cho a weak half-smile. "You sure you want to put me in this thing? If I panic again, I might punch a hole in it."

"I doubt that; this one was built in collaboration with Wakandan experts," said Dr. Cho. "It's reinforced with vibranium."

"So's this," said Bucky, tapping his arm. But after a few more minutes of pondering the pain from his bullet wounds, he sighed and nodded. "Okay. I'll..."

"Steve can talk to you while you're inside," she said. "Just try to breathe. We'll finish as quick as we can, and when it's done, all you'll have left is scar tissue - if even that."

Steve held Bucky's hand until the last possible second, then Wanda stepped forward as Vision prepared to close it. "Wait a second. I can help." Bucky hesitated, then nodded. She brushed her power across his mind again, centering on the feel of Steve's hand clasping his. Bucky sighed and closed his eyes. "Okay." Steve hesitantly let Bucky go, and Wanda nodded. "I let him...feel like you're still there. It won't last long, but it might help."

"You okay, Buck?" Steve asked as Vision closed the lid and the cradle hummed to life.

"Yeah," Bucky whispered.

Dr. Cho watched the readouts and said, "It looks like it'll be less than ten minutes. Just try to relax. Nothing should hurt."

Bucky tried, but his heart rate and blood pressure were rising fast, and after only two minutes, he made the mistake of opening his eyes, and everything on the vitals monitors spiked. "Shiiiiit," Sam muttered.

"Bucky, listen to me!" Steve said. "I'm right here. Talk to me. You hear me?"

"Yeah," Bucky gasped as he fought to control his breathing.

"Seriously? You're giving the Winter fucking Soldier a free tanning session?" said a voice from the doorway. It was Stark, clad in his armor.

Everyone spun around. Steve draped an arm over the cradle, and Wanda kept her back to it. Every mind in the room was now a chorus of profanity, except for Bucky's, which was white noise of desperately-stifled panic so intense that he didn't hear Stark. _Thank God for small mercies._

Wanda's admiration for Helen Cho grew when she moved without hesitating to impose her body between Stark and the regeneration cradle. "Whatever it is you want will have to wait."

Stark took a step forward and flipped the visor of his helmet up, fixing hot, dark eyes not on Dr. Cho, but on Steve. "You said he needed surgery. He's gotten that. He gets nothing else in this compound except a cell."

Sam hurried to Wanda's side as Wanda waved her hand behind her back at the cradle, blocking the sound of Stark's voice. Bucky was terrified enough without it. The cradle buzzed in protest when he moved to wrap his flesh hand around his metal one, trying to hold himself back from tearing at the lid. "It's all right, Buck," Steve whispered desperately, eyes on Stark. "It's all right."

To Wanda's surprise, but intense relief, Vision went to flank Dr. Cho. "No, Tony, I'm afraid you're wrong. You agreed when you first engaged Dr. Cho's services that she holds jurisdiction over medical care for the Avengers."

"He is _not_ an Avenger!" Tony snarled.

"No, but an Avenger brought him here for treatment - namely, myself," Vision replied. Every vein on Stark's face stood out in bold relief as Vision went on, "Sergeant Barnes rescued young Peter Parker from the guards on the Raft, and without treatment, that rescue would have been at the cost of his own life. Until Dr. Cho is satisfied that treatment is complete, he's in _her_ custody, and no one is entitled to overrule that - not even yourself. You and Ms. Potts were quite adamant about that point, as was Dr. Banner."

The cradle buzzed again, and Stark eyed it. "What's going on?"

Dr. Cho returned to the screen and winced. Bucky's pulse and respiration rates were jumping all over. He wasn't panicking...not violently, anyway.

Only Wanda could see exactly what was going on inside the cradle - and maybe Vision.

Bucky was hyperventilating _._ "S-Steve?"

Steve jumped and clutched at the cradle. "Buck, I'm here. It's okay, I'm right here. Just stay with me. Almost done."

She felt a _lurch_ in Stark's mind, and realized Friday must have been tapped into the readings from the cradle. Stark knew what Bucky was going through, and he was shocked. "What the hell's wrong with him?"

"You're kidding, right?" demanded Sam. "That poor bastard spent _decades_ being shoved into a coffin-shaped cryo chamber to be frozen alive when he wasn't getting the living shit beaten out of him or his brain scrambled by Hydra - why the hell would he _not_ like getting stuck inside that cradle?"

Stark looked at Cho - appealing to her. "He killed my parents."

Dr. Cho took a deep breath. "I'll be the one to say it, Tony, as harsh as it is: I don't care who he killed. He's my patient. Until _I_ release him, you _do not_ interfere. If you have a problem with that, then I will no longer serve as treating physician for the Avengers. The thought breaks my heart, because you all need a doctor with powerful tools, but if you're going to meddle in my work at your whims, then you'll have to hire someone else."

The cradle buzzed more insistently, and from inside, there was a thud. "Bucky! Take it easy! Shit, he's panicking, what do we do?" Steve demanded.

"Let me," said Wanda, spinning back towards it. "I didn't want to put him under, but better that than he hurts himself."

Dr. Cho looked at the readout of Bucky tearing at the inside of the cradle and grimaced. "Do it."

Wanda's power flowed through the tiniest crack in the lid; Bucky saw or sensed it and cried out, clawing at the cradle walls. Then her mental command reached him, wrapping him in soft arms and whispering into his brain: _Sleep._

The panic in his mind quieted, the noise of terror went silent, and Bucky went limp. Stark watched, struggling to hang onto his rage and his hate while witnessing a terror that he knew all too well. _If I wanted to be really cruel - again - I'd make you remember how he feels, because you've felt the walls closing in on you and trapped like an animal._ Wanda sighed to herself and didn't turn around. She didn't use her power to be cruel anymore.

Anyway, it was Bucky she needed to be looking after. Even in his sleep, he whimpered, still frightened. Wanda soothed the terror away. "He's dreaming," she explained to Steve. "I'm making sure they're not nightmares. How much longer?"

"Five more minutes."

Stark latched onto something, at last, unrelated to Bucky's presence. "You can stop nightmares?" he asked Wanda. She looked up and nodded, shamelessly reading Stark as he did the math in his head. "Okay. Fine. Do your thing," he said to Cho. To Wanda, he said, "Finish doing your thing with him, then come with me. I need your help."

"Damn, I've got whiplash," muttered Sam. Brushing off Steve's noise of protest, he held up a hand, "And just why should Wanda trust you enough to go _anywhere_ with you after the bullshit you just tried to pull with somebody completely helpless?"

Wanda could see what Stark wanted. "It's okay, Sam. I'll do it if Peter and his mother - I mean, his guardian, if it's okay with them. I don't use my power on anyone's mind without permission - _unless_ they're about to hurt themselves, like Bucky was," she amended it, seeing Stark's skeptical look.

Stark's helmet closed, and only Wanda heard the command he gave it: _"Containment mode._ " It unfolded to let him out, then reformed behind him. "Peter's sleep-deprived, but he's so freaked out that he can't...drugs aren't having any effect. Or there may still be drugs in his system; the medics aren't sure. He's out for a few minutes, then he wakes up again."

Wanda considered that and said, "I can probably help him. If it's drugs, I might be able to get them out of his system quicker. If not drugs, I can probably help calm him down enough to sleep."

Bucky was still asleep when the cradle finally reached the end of its cycle. Steve and Sam opened the lid with undisguised relief, and Steve slipped his arms inside to lift him out. Bucky stirred and shook his head, blinking awake as Steve sat him down on the exam bed. "Steve? Wha's...what happened..."

"You suffered a panic attack in the regeneration cradle, Sergeant Barnes," said Vision. They all deliberately ignored that the suit _and_ Stark took a step forward. "Wanda sedated you so that you wouldn't injure yourself."

"Sorry," said Wanda. "I know you hate that."

Bucky smiled weakly, as if to brush it off - then he saw Stark. He stiffened, but even as Stark started forward, all Bucky did was try to push Steve away. " _No,"_ Steve hissed.

"It's okay - "

"It's _not!_ " Steve growled.

Stark's smirk at Bucky was ice cold. "You are so incredibly under arrest."

"Hey, fuck you!" Sam exploded. He pointed at Wanda. "You come asking _her_ for favors and now pull this on the same guy who saved your little spider-kid's ass? Uh-uh!"

The suit started forward, and Steve leaped upright. Stark demanded, "Rogers, are you really planning a repeat performance of Siberia?!"

Bucky grabbed Steve's shoulders. "No, he's _not!_ Steve, move!"

Finally, after over an hour of silent observation, Kurt Wagner stepped forward and touched Steve's arm. "Maybe it isn't necessary."

Steve met Kurt's eyes and froze. Wanda grinned.

Steve gave Bucky a shove into Kurt's arms. "Do it, get him out of here!"

"Wait, Steve, no - " Bucky threw out an arm, but Kurt was too fast even for Bucky's reflexes, and they both vanished with a _BAMF_ and a burst of sulfuric smoke.

The suit got to them a split second later and grabbed Steve as Tony rushed forward, spitting curses. Then Kurt reappeared, and before Tony was fully back into the suit, Kurt had bamfed Steve out of the suit's grasp. Dr. Cho looked shocked…but from Wanda's mental senses, she wasn't as shocked as she should've been. _She's met the X-Men before. She approves of them._ Wanda kept that to herself but couldn't keep the smirk off her own face.

Sam burst out laughing. "The best-laid plans, right, Stark?"

Stark popped back out of the suit, seething. "So that's it, Wilson? You just use my shit when it works for you, then run?"

Sam flipped him off. "You're the biggest goddamn hypocrite on the planet, you know? No way could you and even a dozen of your suits have rescued all those kids, let alone taken six bullets for your little drummer boy!"

With another _BAMF,_ Kurt returned, but with Steve. Steve stepped free, coughing, and looked steadily at Stark. "Sorry about that, I told him to bring me back. Bucky's not happy," he remarked to Wanda and Sam, but shrugged. "He can curse me out later. Tony, if you want to arrest somebody, fine. I'm back. I won't run."

"Aw, Cap, no!" Sam protested.

Tony advanced on Steve. "You think I'm gonna give up on bringing in the piece of shit who strangled my mom and beat my dad to death?"

Dr. Cho folded her arms. "Maybe you should look at my readings on his brain first. When Steve said Hydra was controlling Sergeant Barnes' mind, it was the literal truth." Stark turned sharply towards her. She beckoned (sarcastically) towards the screen and the brain scans it showed. "By all normal standards of neurology, James Barnes shouldn't be able to function at all, let alone walk and talk. The scarring of his memory centers is horrific, the amygdala looks like it was used as a dog's chew toy, and the frontal lobe has been shredded."

Sam nodded. "I'm not an expert, but I've heard what a few experts besides her have had to say when they've had a look at his brain. Just a few years into Hydra's hands, he should've been either dead or a vegetable. Sorry, Steve," he added, seeing Steve's flinch. But he pressed at Tony, "You've been hunting him? Then you must've gotten your hands on some of the shit they used to fuck with his head."

Tony just glared at them, then looked at Wanda, expecting her to chime in with what she saw in Tony's head. She stared him down. "I won't reveal your private thoughts if you're not threatening anyone, no matter how much you deserve it." _I won't tell them how deep in denial you are, because you know what they did to Bucky to make him into their creature, and you're still desperate to blame him rather than admit the people who really did murder your parents are all gone._

Kurt stepped forward and addressed Stark. "Of course, you know where I've most likely taken Bucky. It's the same place that we gave all those children sanctuary. So it falls to you, whether you want to kill him so badly that you'd risk exposing the other victims from the Raft who were just as innocent as your Peter." It was Tony's turn to flinch. Kurt turned and looked at Sam. "Would you like a ride?"

"Wanda?" asked Sam.

She shook her head. "No. I'll stay and see if I can help Peter recover."

"Then I'll stay with her," said Sam.

"And me," added Steve. "I'm the one who's really been harboring Bucky. You can have me if you want."

Tony trembled, but they all began to sense his obsession cracking under the weight of the past day. Vision looked at Dr. Cho's screen and said, "I'm afraid Dr. Cho's assessment of Sergeant Barnes' condition is accurate. If his system hadn't been adulterated by the serum, he would never have survived this mistreatment, let alone begun to recover any memories or executive function. And...particular attention was paid to his ability to make decisions or feel emotions. The damage to the frontal lobe and amygdala was extreme, but it appears very methodical."

" _Shut up,_ " Tony hissed. He spun away from them and waved an arm at Steve and Kurt. "Go. Just go. Get the fuck out." At Wanda, "He's in the main infirmary downstairs."

"Sam - "

"Cap, seriously, _go._ Bucky's probably freaking out, and the X-Men are gonna need all the help they can get with the rest of the kids. I'll stay with Wanda."

With a sigh, Steve relented, and Kurt bamfed him away. Wanda and Sam went with Vision and Stark.

 _ **To Be Continued...**_

 _ **Coming Soon:**_ _Wanda only wants to help Peter, but all Peter and Aunt May know about Wanda is what they've heard from rather biased sources. Tony and Vision have some fast explaining to do as Peter struggles in the aftermath of torture and Aunt May struggles not to lose her mind!_

 _(This chapter was a little on the short side, so perhaps I can be persuaded to update tomorrow!)_

 **PLEASE don't forget to review!**


	7. Chapter 7

_**Author's Notes:**_ _This chapter and the previous chapter were originally one really looooong chapter, so I split them up. Thank you all so much for the feedback! As a reminder, our heroes are all in a highly-emotionally charged crisis situation. People are lashing out, breaking down, and generally struggling not to completely lose their shit in the wake of the events on the Raft, and the Avengers in particular have a lot of anger and frustration and hurt saved up from the events of Civil War._

 ** _Canon_** _ **Note:**_ _This fic assumes that Wanda is age twenty-one, and that she and Pietro were fifteen when they were recruited for Baron Strucker's experiments, since I'm guessing the process took awhile based on the comments of Strucker and his henchmen as well as Ultron in the movies._

 **Chapter Seven**

Following the awkwardest...elevator ride...ever, Sam and Wanda followed Stark and Vision into the renovated Avengers infirmary. Sam could hear raised voices before the doors even opened, and he schooled his expression to neutral.

The poor spider-kid looked even worse in full light than he had in the lights of the Raft.

He was clad in pajamas now instead of filthy prison scrubs, but still with greasy hair, sunken, reddened eyes, and a visible tremor. _Shit. Yep, he's sleep-deprived all to hell, but too scared to sleep._

The kid, incredibly, was on his feet now, pleading with an unfamiliar woman who was yelling at Maria Hill. When she saw Stark come in, the strange woman's lips actually curled. "Aunt May - " the kid protested.

 _Ah, so this is the guardian Wanda mentioned. Yeah, I don't blame her for being pissed at Stark._

Aunt May started to turn her wrath on Stark, then she spotted Wanda and Sam and grabbed the kid outright, pulling him away. "Oh, you have _got_ to be kidding me. First Iron Man, now international terrorists?!"

Wanda stopped short. _Oh, hell._ Sam put a hand on her shoulder and said, "Oo-kay, maybe this wasn't the best idea."

Stark desperately held up his hands to Aunt May. "I said I'd get some help that didn't involve drugs."

"May, they were there!" the kid exclaimed, grabbing his aunt's arm. She turned back to him. "They helped get us out. They're not - not - " he swayed, losing focus. "'s okay, I just..."

Aunt May went from mama bear mode to the verge of tears in the blink of an eye. No surprises there. She pulled the kid against her. He was too out of it to be embarrassed, while she looked like she'd flip out if someone got near him.

But the kid slipped under, slumping towards the floor, and she couldn't keep his weight upright. With a sigh, Sam dodged past Wanda and Stark to help her catch him. "I'm not gonna hurt him," he told her.

"Why're you here?" she demanded, her voice rough.

 _If I wanted to make sure Stark never got his hands on this kid again, I'd tell her Wanda was in that Raft in the same kinds of conditions as her nephew._

"Sam!" snapped Wanda.

 _Yeah, no._ The kid whimpered and tossed his head - much like Bucky Barnes had upstairs. Even as Sam carried him back to the bed, he knew the kid wasn't going to stay under for long; he was too agitated. The kid's arm bumped Sam's, and Sam stared at the thick metal cuffs on his lower wrists going halfway up his hands. "The _hell...?_ " He lifted the kid's hand in disbelief. The cuff/gauntlet/things looked like they were…sealed right to his skin.

"That's part of why I asked for Wanda," Stark explained, coming no closer to the kid or his aunt than necessary. "Her power can do...a lot of things with matter. I think she can get those things off him with the least stress."

The kid blinked awake and instinctively tried to squirm away, as Aunt May urged, "Peter, relax!"

"I can't - oh..." He focused on Sam with a woozy smile. "Hey...I r'member you...th'airport…cool wings."

Sam forced a smile. "Yeah, I still want to know if that stuff was that you were sticking us with..." _Ohhh, fuck me. So that's what those sick bondage cuffs are for, to stop whatever that web stuff was from coming out of him. Sons of_ bitches _! Neutral face, man, neutral face…this is not the time to lose my shit._

"We can get them off," said a white-coated doctor anxiously. "But Peter isn't responding to pain medication, and we don't...want it to hurt more than necessary."

Sam couldn't resist. "Son, how _old_ are you?"

Peter didn't answer, but his aunt did, looking at Stark like she might tear him apart at first opportunity. "Sixteen."

 _Jesus. Fucking. Christ._ "So…last year in Germany…fifteen?" Aunt May nodded. Now Sam and Wanda were both glaring holes in Stark's head. _This is who you brought to take down Cap, me, Wanda, Clint, Scott Lang, AND the Winter Soldier? This kid?! This is who you've had fighting that Vulture character and any petty terrorists in the neighborhood? A fucking high-schooler?!_

Aunt May, still wary, grasped the way they were looking at Stark and eyed Sam. "You fought Peter in Germany. Why would you help him now? Why were you fighting for the Winter Soldier then?"

Sam watched Peter drift off again before letting himself growl, "We were trying to stop the maniac who blew up the UN and framed Bucky Barnes and was on his way to Siberia where five _more_ Winter Soldiers were! But you see, _Mr. Stark_ over there wasn't interested in listening to any of us, or in letting us do anything other than go quietly into custody. So we had to fight our way out. I don't know what he told your son – nephew - but I guarantee you, most of it wasn't true. We were trying to save lives and weren't interested in being on Stark's leash. So that made us terrorists."

 _"_ Sam," Wanda spoke upquietly. "This isn't why we're here."

"Why _are_ you here, then?" Peter's aunt demanded.

Wanda looked small when people lashed out at her. Sam and Steve, and later Bucky, had tried to ease her out of that, but she had demons of her own on her conscience – and just enough reinforcement from Tony, Vision, and the American government for those demons to get their claws in deep. That made it hard to convince her she didn't have to let the world flog her while she flogged herself.

But Wanda marshaled herself and answered, "I came because Stark asked me to help. I can...my power...if you want. If _Peter_ wants. Only if you want, I won't do it without permission." She gestured timidly toward Peter's hands. "I think I can get those off without hurting him. And help him sleep without...bad dreams."

Aunt May trembled, absently stroking Peter's hair as he started twitching again. "You'd do that for him?" she whispered.

Wanda answered without hesitating: "Yes."

Sam put in, "Wanda's been with the Avengers three years, and she's never hurt anybody she didn't have to since then. Before that, she was an orphan recruited by Hydra at age fifteen. It's easy to bring fifteen-year-olds around to somebody's way of thinking, y'know." Maybe that was low, but Stark had damn well earned it.

If looks could kill, Aunt May's eyes would've blasted two holes in Stark's chest. Unfortunately, Peter'd come around again and mumbled, "'e's not like that, 'e's not..."

"We don't have to talk about that right now," Aunt May soothed. "I just want you to get better, and if...er, she can help - "

But Peter saw Wanda, got wild-eyed, and started scrambling away from her. "No! No, no brain stuff!"

"Peter, calm down!"

Wanda backed away and held up her hands. "Okay. I won't do 'brain stuff.' I won't do anything you don't want to me to do, I promise!"

The kid huddled against the headboard of the bed, and Sam backed off as his aunt petted his hair and shushed him. "Maybe she could help," Aunt May protested. "You have to sleep!"

Peter desperately shook his head, trembling from head to toe. "I don' wan' brain stuff. Miss'r Stark said she'd make me see things..."

 _Oh fuck you, Stark, fuck you so very much._ Everyone in the room except the kid glared daggers at Stark - also except Wanda, who just looked at the floor.

Vision spoke up. "I'm afraid I may have also given Peter the wrong impression about Wanda's abilities. I told him in Germany what she was capable of, but failed to mention that since joining the Avengers, she has never used her mental power aggressively towards another person again."

Peter just blinked at him, too out of it to process what they were saying. "Peter," said the doctor. "You have to sleep - real sleep, not waking up every five minutes." Peter shook his head. "I've seen what Wanda does, and it won't hurt you - "

" - no," said Wanda, still not looking up. "He said no. I won't do it against his will."

 _Stark, I am going to beat the iron shit out of you first chance I get,_ Sam silently vowed.

Aunt May was in tears as the kid slipped in and out of consciousness in her arms, and furiously wiped her face. "Okay. Okay, fine, no brain stuff, just get these - these things off his arms."

Wanda came to the bedside as Peter stirred awake again. He watched her, then nervously held out his hand. She didn't look at his face. Peter and Aunt May jumped at the sight of her red power covering his hands, but after a few moments without pain, he relaxed, and so did his aunt.

Peter's eyes were glassy, but he stared at Wanda. "...you're crying." _Shit,_ thought Sam _._ "Why - why're you crying?" Wanda didn't answer. Or possibly couldn't. "I'm sorry...I'm...I don't..." He passed out again, and Wanda kept working without stopping.

When Sam looked around, he saw that Pepper and Hill looked ready to gut Tony. Vision and Tony were both avoiding everyone's eyes.

It was only a few very long minutes before the first cuff glowed red at the seam, and Wanda gently took it apart. Sam hissed at the sight of the kid's red, raw skin underneath, but Wanda's power shimmered around it. "Doesn' hurt," Peter said weakly, sounding surprised.

"I'm blocking the pain." Wanda jerked her head at the doctor, who hurried over to examine the freed hand while she got to work on the second one. "There was some sort of...glue holding it down. I got rid of all that, but I can't heal the burns."

"We can take care of those," said the doctor, and started smearing ointment on Peter's wrist and hand. "Let me know if this hurts."

"Doesn't," Peter mumbled. He slipped under again for a few minutes, then blinked awake and looked at Wanda. "Thanks." She nodded, still without looking him in the eyes. "'m sorry, di'n mean t'hurt your feelings..."

"It's okay," Wanda muttered and quickly turned her head away. But that meant she had to turn either in the direction of Aunt May or towards the onlookers, so Stark, Pepper, Vision, and Hill, as well as the medics, got a good look at the tears she didn't have a free hand to brush away.

By the time Wanda was done, she was shaking, and Aunt May was watching her in shock. When Wanda put Peter's other hand down and moved aside to let the doctor take over, May grabbed for her. "Wait! Wait, please, wait!"

Wanda hurriedly wiped her face and stammered, "I can't - I won't do it without his - "

" - Just let me talk to him, please, he's so confused..." On cue, Peter jerked awake with a gasp and tried to pull away from the doctors. "Peter, baby, listen to me, I think Wanda can help you sleep."

Peter squinted as he looked from May to Wanda, but he didn't recoil this time. "Wha - how's it work?"

Wanda hesitated. It was Vision who stepped forward and explained. "Peter, Wanda's power allows her to direct the attention of a person's mind. This would let her take your mind off memories of - of the Raft, long enough for you to relax and sleep. She won't hurt you."

Finally, exhaustion and his aunt's pleading won out...and maybe the fact that he'd made Wanda cry. The kid stared at Wanda and sighed, leaning on his aunt. "O-okay."

"You're sure?" Wanda asked.

"Yeah. Okay. Can't...I can't sleep. You can...really fix that?" Wanda nodded. "Okay. Peter cast a groggy look towards Stark. "Aun' May... don' yell at 'im...'s not his fault."

Wanda winced and didn't look up. Sam managed not to smirk. _Yeah, sorry, son, fat chance of that not happening. You'll understand when you're older._ Aunt May looked on nervously as red power trailed from Wanda's fingertips, and Peter's eyes fluttered closed. He let out a deep sigh and relaxed against his aunt's side. Wanda kept her power framing his scalp for a few more minutes. His breathing deepened, and he stopped twitching in his sleep. The low beeps of the heartrate monitor slowed down along with all the other lines on the readout graphs. His hands relaxed from where they'd been clutching his aunt's and the bedclothes.

Wanda removed her hand from his hair. "He'll sleep now. He'll wake up when he feels better rested," she said, still not looking at anyone. "Once he does, it won't - won't hold anymore, so he'll be able to have bad dreams again. I can't make 'brain stuff' last forever, even if we want it to."

"Thank you," Aunt May breathed, holding Peter's slackened hand to her cheek. Her eyes hardened as she looked from Wanda and Sam to the rest of the onlookers. "Stark, you and I are going to talk later. You damn well better show up."

Pepper stepped forward. "He will. _I_ promise he will."

Wanda stood up, still not meeting anyone's eyes. "Can we go now?"

Stark tried to catch Wanda's eye, but failed. She wouldn't look at anyone. He sighed. "Happy, drive them anywhere they want to go. Turn off the GPS tracker and don't look at street signs."

"Yes, Boss," the driver mumbled, looking as chastened as Stark.

Vision reached towards Wanda as she and Sam passed. "Wanda - " She jerked away from him and went even faster for the elevator. Sam shot him a warning glare and to his relief, Vision didn't try to follow.

Wanda broke down as soon as they were in the car. Sam hugged her, rocking her like a kid. "Shhh, it's okay, it's okay. Stark and Vision did as much messing with your head as you ever did with anybody else's, and they know it. It's okay."

"Where to?" Stark's driver mumbled.

Whatever Stark had said, Sam wasn't about to take it on faith, but there weren't any places in New York he'd consider safe. "Damn. I dunno, Central Park."

"You want a hotel? Mr. Stark'll take care of it - "

" - Thanks, bro, but I think we've both had enough of being taken care of by Mr. Stark," Sam said curtly. Instead, he fished for his cell phone and called Steve. "Hey, Cap, we're finished up. Can Nightcrawler meet us at Central Drive and 59th?"

* * *

Pepper, Hill, _and_ Vision insisted on following Tony to meet Happy when he got back. "Where'd they go?" Tony asked.

"I thought you promised not to track them?" Hill remarked.

Happy sighed. "Wherever it was, they didn't trust me to take 'em there. They had me drop them in Central Park and called Cap to pick 'em up."

"Is Miss Maximoff...okay?" asked Vision.

Happy looked down and shook his head. "Nah, she's...not good. Kinda melted down in the car."

Pepper eyed Happy, then started towards Tony. It took all the willpower he had not to step back. "Oh, thank God, if you didn't get around to it, I was going to," said Hill.

 _POW!_ Pepper hauled off and slapped Tony as hard as she could, leaving his ears ringing. He looked for fire in her skin, but there wasn't any. _Lucky for me or she really would've taken off my face._ He blinked through bleary vision as she turned towards Happy. "Hey, hey, no - Pep, he only did what I told him to - "

Pepper shook Tony off so hard she knocked him off balance and didn't take her eyes off Happy. "Did you...know...how old that boy was?"

Happy gulped, then straightened and told her the truth: "Yes, ma'am."

She raised her hand and Tony (and Happy) braced themselves, but then she lowered it, and jerked her head towards Tony. "If he wants you to keep working for him, fine. You don't work for me anymore, do you understand?"

Happy took it stoically. "Yes, ma'am."

"Pepper, c'mon, that's not fair!" Tony protested.

She rounded on Tony and hissed, "Believe me, if I could fire you too, I would, _Mister Stark._ Every time I think I've seen the ugliest you can be, you lower the bar further than I thought possible."

Pepper stalked away. Tony watched her go.

 _ **To Be Continued...**_

 _ **Coming Soon:**_ _The morning after Peter's rescue from the Raft, May Parker is ready for a reckoning with Tony Stark, and Tony makes his confession. But May's grief and rage have more than one target, forcing Tony to run interference._

 **PLEASE don't forget to review!**

 _ **FYI:** On Tumblr, I am 3Fluffies. Feel free to come say hi, chat/argue/debate/throw rotten vegetables over this story and other stories in this and other fandoms!_


	8. Chapter 8

_**Author's Notes:**_ _Well, the fic is still standing despite yesterday's drama! For the record, readers, I welcome feedback both positive and negative - I am perfectly willing to hear and discuss criticism of this story...up until it escalates to personal insults, then I'll just laugh at you, but trying to get a fic deleted because you don't like it? That's just juvenile and shitty._

 _ **Reminder:**_ _As I've previously cautioned, emotions are running very high in this part of the story and characters losing their shit. Also, very few characters are in possession of all the facts, there's a lot of blame being slung around for Peter's treatment, and nobody is entirely able to correctly judge. Unreliable narrators are the rule, not the exception in my fic, so some characters are too hard on others, while others are too hard on themselves._

 **Chapter Eight**

As Wanda Maximoff had promised, Peter slept through the night. The doctor, Dr. Milligan, mounted a device on the headboard of the bed that would track his brainwaves. "This is much more comfortable than those nasty sticky electrodes," he assured May. "And it'll let us know if his sleep is disrupted or if he's having nightmares."

May watched the smooth, gentle lines on the readout graph with a strange, obsessive fascination. It meant Peter was sleeping, dreaming peacefully, getting the rest he needed after ten days without it. _Ten days of sleep deprivation and God knows what else. All thanks to Tony fucking Stark._

Some orderlies brought another bed into the room, but for May, sleep didn't come nearly so easy.

She jerked awake at dawn and scrambled to check on Peter. He was still breathing deeply, starting to curl up like she was used to seeing him when she had to wake him for school. That eased her mind more than anything else had in the past two weeks.

There was no going back to sleep. She paced out into the outer infirmary along a wall of windows and watched the sun come up over the forest and distant mountains. Any other time, she'd have been envious and awestruck by a view like this, out in the _actual_ suburbs, where the crime rate was probably zero and houses had lawns. _Now all I want is to get the hell out of this nuthouse and never, ever let Peter anywhere near it or Stark Tower again._

There was no way in hell it would be so simple. Peter was Spider-Man. He wasn't going to give that up now without a fight. What teenaged boy would voluntarily give up being a superhero?

 _Look what they did to him! Look what his OWN COUNTRY did to him! They knew he was a high school sophomore, they had to know to find his class, and they still walked into his school, dragged him out, locked him up, sleep deprived him, and burned his hands! Since when do we do that to teenagers?!_

"Mrs. Parker?"

May wasn't entirely sure how she'd wound up on the floor outside Peter's suite, rocking back and forth with tears streaming down her face.

There was a purple guy kneeling in front of her. Oh, right. Vision, the alien...android...whatever the hell he was, who spoke like someone's butler but had admitted lying to Peter about Wanda Maximoff yesterday. She thought she remembered seeing him fighting along with Spider-Man - _Peter_ \- in that airport last year.

"How could you take him into situations like that if you knew how old he was?" she demanded hoarsely.

Vision sighed. "I understand your anger, and I'm afraid it's now difficult to justify our actions. We thought at first that Peter could assist us in deescalating a situation nonviolently with his powers, but it...didn't go as planned. He suffered only bruises."

She snatched the handkerchief he offered and wiped her eyes. _Seriously. A purple android butler._ "I thought you and Stark were the ones _enforcing_ those rules about enhanced people? Why the hell was Peter detained?"

"Because we failed to register him. This was also an error on our part. The Sokovia Accords required registration of enhanced individuals, and Mr. Stark and I did...support them. I suppose we assumed that the oversight of the Avengers, as well as his age, would protect him from scrutiny. We were wrong, both in Peter's case and in others'."

That made her skin crawl. "He said something about other kids. He's not the only one they did this to?"

"No. The majority of the children detained are mutants, born with natural enhancements by no choice of their own."

"Peter's a mutant?" That would make sense. It'd all been tabloid fodder until a few years ago, now there were Senate hearings about mutations and enhancements. _But why would he have been afraid to tell me?_

"Peter is not a mutant, as I understand it," said Vision. "Although his enhancement does appear to from natural causes rather than artificially induced by deliberate human action. He believes he was bitten by a genetically altered spider when he was fourteen."

May pressed the heels of her palms against her eyes. "My God, this has been going on that long?" _What kind of fucking parent am I that I didn't put it together sooner? Why did it take a SWAT team dragging him out of class for me to connect the dots?_

"He had only been, shall we say, crime fighting for six months when you first met Mr. Stark. That and preventing automobile accidents." May blinked, baffled, and Vision explained, "Your nephew is now remarkably strong. He is capable of lifting and moving several tons on his own, and his agility and balance are far beyond normal human parameters. His web is even stronger, and has tensile strength comparable to steel. That is the, ah, reason Mr. Stark asked for his assistance in Germany last year."

"So 'Mr. Stark' decided to give him an upgrade from stopping petty crime and fender benders to fighting the most dangerous terrorists in the world, and the fact that he was _fifteen_ didn't make any difference to _any_ of you so-called 'good guys'?" May snarled.

Weird that purple skin and yellow eyes could be so expressive. The man looked unmistakably sad. At any other moment, May would've felt sympathetic. Then Vision paused, tilting his head as if listening to something May couldn't hear. "Mr. Stark is aware that you're awake, and willing to speak candidly with you, if you wish. If you don't, I can answer most of your questions about Peter's activities, but I'm not able to entirely explain Mr. Stark's reasoning, only my own."

May paced along the wall of windows. "Fine. We might as well get this conversation out of the way while Peter's still asleep."

"He's on his way."

May eyed Vision suspiciously. "Have you got a Bluetooth I can't see?"

"I do not. I can receive electronic communications with my brain." All May could do was stare at him.

When Stark came in, she found that she was too tired to want to go for his throat like yesterday. And he looked like he hadn't slept at all. She was glad to see that. _Bastard._ May rallied her ragged nerves, and managed to speak in a voice that was almost steady. "I want the facts, not excuses."

To her surprise, Stark nodded. "Okay."

That forced her to think for a minute, so she decided to start at the beginning. "What did you say to him when you came to my apartment last year that first time, to talk about your 'grant'? I can't believe he'd just drop school, me, and his friends to go abroad and fight superheroes and terrorists!"

Avoiding her eyes, Stark went towards Peter's door, looking through the glass. She almost snapped at him to get the hell away. He seemed to sense her feelings and let her take his place looking in on Peter as he started his explanation. "Back then, he was in a homemade costume. I offered him something better. Actual tech that'd help protect him...a cooler look, I admit..." He suddenly flinched, squeezing his eyes shut and rubbing the bridge of his nose. May waited, listening to his ragged breathing, and tried not to hold her breath. Her imagination had come up with any number of explanations, and she had a feeling Stark was still gearing up for the worst of it.

 _If I start screaming, I might wake Peter up, then he'll be begging me to go easy on Daddy Warbucks here._ After she couldn't stand the silence any longer, she ground out, "I want the truth. _All_ of it. You damn well better tell me everything."

Stark abruptly let his breath out. "Yeah, I know. I will, 'cause...the more I think about it, the more of an asshole idiot I realize I've been, for what little it's worth."

May hadn't expected that. Maybe that wasn't worth much, but maybe it was a start. She said nothing, and Stark went on, "So, yeah, you've got every reason in the universe to rip me a new one, and I'm about to give you more, but...your kid didn't run off to Germany on a whim. At least, not on his own whim. All the stuff I offered him, the suit, the support, the bling, the chance to make a big difference in the world, stand up for the little guy, fight the good fight..." Stark's breath caught and he spun away for a few seconds, breathing hard, like this was really painful for him to say. May clenched her jaw so tight that it hurt. Stark finished, "...he said no. He said he had school, and...he wanted to come, but he wasn't..."

It got a little of May's attention - a very little - that even Vision was no longer looking ashamed but rather staring at Stark in shock. As if even Stark's own allies didn't realize what Stark had done.

When she had the air to talk, her voice shook. "You threatened him. Didn't you?"

The way Stark flinched was the answer. "I - I dropped a hint, y'know that I might tell you about his little hobby - _fuck,_ okay, yeah, goddamnit, yeah, I threatened him. I didn't mean..." He paced back and forth along the wall of windows, still rubbing at his eyes and his forehead, speaking through clenched teeth. "'m sorry. He wanted to go and I knew he did, he just needed a push - so I pushed him - once he was on board, he was thrilled, I knew he would be, I wasn't gonna let him get hurt - "

"Tony." Vision's voice seemed...harder. "Mrs. Parker asked not to be given excuses."

To Stark's...credit?...he looked at Vision with bright, wet eyes, and nodded. "Yeah, yeah, I know. 'kay. So, I...talked him into it. I had my people put together a suit for him - none of 'em knew what it was for, they had no idea, I promise. It's on me. And I told him the job: we needed to apprehend Captain America before he did any more stupid shit for his old army buddy. I'd seen videos of the kid, stopping an out-of-control SUV going fifty miles an hour with his bare hand. I'd seen the strength of his web. I needed somebody with that kind of power, and...and..." He shut his eyes again.

"And?" May prompted.

"And I knew Rogers wouldn't go all-out on a kid. Neither would his team."

It felt very cold, despite the sunlight streaming through the windows. May folded her arms. "So you used my child as a human shield."

"No! No, it wasn't like that. I never meant for him to get physical. His job was to web Rogers up and grab the shield if things went south, that was all!" Stark insisted, turning to face her.

But Vision stepped forward. "I believe you are omitting certain facts, which Mrs. Parker has a right to know." Stark looked at him and seemed to shrink several inches, but he didn't tell Vision to shut up. "You did state your intention that Peter stay clear of any action, but you also gave him very detailed instructions about possible combat with each and every one of Captain Rogers' supporters. Including one who you believed would _not_ hold back."

"The Winter Soldier," May breathed, remembering the news. Now it was her turn to spin away and start stalking along the wall like a cat. "You put Peter in the same place as the Winter Soldier, the deadliest assassin in history, they said. He'd bombed the UN and killed hundreds of people, and you brought Peter up against him _and_ Captain America!"

Staring out the window, Stark nodded. "...I swear, I told him to stay away from Barnes. I told him to get clear if things blew up."

"Of course, you did," May sneered. " _After_ you pep talked him about the good fight and defending freedom, justice, and the American way, got him a shiny new suit and all the - what was it, bling? If your plan didn't work, he was supposed to just sit down and watch the action?"

Stark looked at her through his fingertips, breathing hard. "Brains're inherited, I guess."

"Wrong. I'm only his aunt by marriage. Now get back to the subject," May's heart was starting to speed up as she remembered. "What. Happened. In the airport, I've seen those videos. All hell broke loose with Peter right in the middle of it - my God, Spider-Man, Peter _fought_ the Winter Soldier!"

Stark looked away again, and when he took too long to answer, Vision did. May supposed a part of her was starting to like the purple guy. "There are certain facts about Sergeant Barnes that you're entitled to know now, Mrs. Parker. It may not be clear in the video clips released, but he _did_ realize Peter's age very quickly, and fought defensively throughout the...incident in Leipzig. He was also innocent of the Vienna bombing."

May leaned against the wall. "Yeah, I remember that bombing was a frame-up. But he _was_ some kind of Soviet master assassin before that, right?"

" _Yes!"_ The vitriol suddenly in Stark's voice brought her up sharp. Now he was looking directly at Vision, eyes blazing, as if instead of being on the edge of breaking down, now he was on the edge of going rabid. "He killed my parents. My mom and dad, he crashed their car, beat my dad to death and _strangled_ my mom!"

May went flat against the wall, and found herself pawing feebly for a handhold. Her stomach hadn't felt settled in two weeks since Peter'd been taken, but now it was spinning and boiling, and she was going to vomit.

Vision walked away from Stark's fury and gently took May's elbow. "That was unnecessary, Tony. Do you want to sit down?" he asked May.

She let herself hang onto him for a few seconds and gulped deep breaths of air. "N-no. No. 'm okay." _Beat to death...strangled...he was in arm's reach of Peter in that airport..._

"As you've undoubtedly gathered, Mr. Stark has difficulty being objective on the subject of Sergeant Barnes, but there are certain mitigating factors."

May choked out an incredulous laugh. "'Mitigating factors'?"

"See?" grunted Stark, pressing his hands against the window.

Vision ignored Stark and went on, "This is simplifying a very complex situation for our purposes, but James Buchanan Barnes suffered very deliberate trauma to his brain at the hands of Hydra, for the purpose of destroying his memories and his free will. Whether he is, in fact, personally guilty of any action taken under their control is very questionable, for anyone who is not emotionally compromised and has seen the scans of his brain."

May...believed him. But that still begged a new question: "W-why would you tell me that?" At least it'd given her the distraction so her knees stopped feeling like water, and she could let go of him and stand on her own.

"Because it was Sergeant Barnes himself who rescued your nephew."

 _And..._ she had to catch herself on Vision again. She doubted the building was swaying as violently as she felt like it was. "What?"

Stark pressed harder against the windows. She instinctively wanted to tell him to quit; did he want to fall out?!

Vision repeated slowly, "It was Captain America and his supporters who discovered that the R - that is, a particular prison facility was now being used to hold children, mainly mutants, under the auspices of the Sokovia Accords. They chose to go outside the law to free the victims, and Sergeant Barnes recognized Peter Parker from the incident at the airport. Despite knowing the...intensity of Mr. Stark's feelings, they called Mr. Stark and myself to inform us that Peter was there. While evacuating Peter, Sergeant Barnes came under fire from the prison guards. He suffered six bullet wounds, two of which were life threatening even to a man of his enhancements, shielding Peter with his own body."

Everything...got a little gray after that. May wound up on the floor with her head between her knees, and the next thing she could focus on clearly was Stark and Vision arguing as they sat her upright. " - tell her that - "

" - for the facts - "

" - not that there were _bullets_ involved, you dumbass!"

\- haps your judgment is compromised on all facts where James Barnes is involved, Tony."

"Shut up," May grumbled.

"Oh, here we go, she's back. You want some alcohol?" asked Stark.

She shook her head. "Where's Peter? 's he still asleep?"

"Yeah. It's just been a minute or so."

It was a few more minutes before she could lean back against the wall without her head feeling like it would fall off her shoulders. She waved Vision off when he offered to bring her a chair. "So, the rest. Who hit him in Leipzig?"

Vision and Stark looked blankly at each other. "I...dunno," said Stark. "Could've been any of 'em. It got chaotic."

"Steve...from Brooklyn..." she murmured, recalling a snatch of conversation after Peter's "fight." "Captain America and I are going to have a chat at some point."

Vision said, "Before you blame Captain Rogers for Peter's injuries during that confrontation, you should be aware that he tried to explain himself in Leipzig, both to Mr. Stark and to Peter directly.

"How do you know; you were on the perimeter!" Stark protested.

"I was also on the coms, Tony," Vision replied. "I heard every word that was said - and recorded them pursuant to Accords regulations." Stark cringed. May was definitely getting to like Vision. He turned from Stark back to her and continued, "Mr. Stark as well as I myself made crucial errors in judgment on that day. We were certain that Sergeant Barnes was a serious public threat and that Captain Rogers, given their history, was incapable of seeing that. Our intention was to take them into custody by any means necessary, and only then would we permit discussion of Captain Rogers' theory that Barnes had been framed. We refused to hear him out and warned Peter not to hear him out. Knowing Peter as I now do, and knowing the facts that we now do...I believe Peter would not have chosen to accompany us to Germany. Rather, his philosophy towards entering action is very much aligned with Captain America's."

Stark bristled and started to argue - then caught himself. He stared into the distance like he'd forgotten May and Vision were there.

That annoyed May, that he couldn't even seem to pay attention. "Would Captain America have 'recruited' him like Mr. Stark did?" she asked. Stark shrank again, and she was glad. She wanted to dig harder at that sore spot.

She doubted that Vision did have any malice towards Stark - or towards anyone maybe - but he did answer her bluntly, and maybe that ate at Stark even more. "No. I don't believe Captain Rogers would have considered even the risks of that day warranted to bring a fifteen-year-old into the conflict by means of bribery, blackmail, and deception."

Stark flinched _hard._ The way Vision was looking at him...maybe Vision could feel malice after all, or just enough pique to want to bring the point home. He turned back to May. "In any case, although I was not aware of the...circumstances that brought Peter into our fold, I alone recognized his age, and I did participate in instructing him and...warning him against Captain Rogers and his supporters' positions, which in hindsight seems more like indoctrination."

Stark made a noise in his throat as he got up and turned away. May held up her hand to stop Vision from saying any more. _Go on, you bastard. Let's hear it from you._

It was several long minutes before he spoke, and when he did, his voice was so rough that she knew he'd broken. "After Germany...I tried to get him out, slow him down. Didn't let him use some of the advanced features, not 'til he was older, more mature. He wouldn't stop. He got his friend to hack the damn suit, release stuff I hadn't planned on him using for years."

"Ned?" May asked. Stark turned around. His wet face and red eyes didn't move May even an inch. She'd never considered herself pitiless before. "His best friend. They're both computer nerds. Between the two of them, they've gotten into a lot of programs they shouldn't. If you'd actually learned anything about the child soldier you recruited," she relished the way he flinched again, "you'd have known that. They narrowly escaped a criminal record when they were thirteen for getting into secured systems." _Ned must know, then. He and I are going to have a talk, and soon. Whether Peter likes it or not, Ned's going to see him like this and know he helped cause it._

That was unfair...maybe. Ned had been a wreck these past two weeks...but even that, he hadn't told - no, not May, but he'd practically tackled Stark on one of Stark's visits and followed him into the hallway, whispering. _He talked to Stark about Peter being Spider-Man, not me._ God, that stung. It was stupid, skewed priorities to feel so hurt about that. Or was it? _You took my baby away from me. He's all I have left, and you took him and threw him to the wolves. Now he can't depend on me. He hides from me, lies to me, makes excuses for you._

Stark had his face in his hand again. "I took the suit from him after that ferry debacle. He was being too reckless. Damn it, he didn't understand, he _wouldn't._ He went after Toomes in his old homemade suit. I realized then, he wasn't gonna stop. Taking my tech back wouldn't stop him. I even...I offered, to have him join the Avengers." He raised his hands and took a step back as May surged to her feet. "At least then he'd have a team and backup, instead of running around on his own!" Stark dropped his hands and looked down. "He said no. I almost..."

"Almost what? Threatened him again? Lied to him again?"

Stark's eyes welled up again. He shook his head. "He asked if I was joking. 'Testing his character' or something. He didn't want to be an Avenger after the thing with Vulture. I told him yeah, it was just a test. He could have the suit, but he said he'd slow it down. Just be a friendly neighborhood Spider-Man, like I wanted him to back at the beginning. So I dropped the Avengers offer, sent him the suit. He'd have it, when he did get into action. It'd help protect him - I know!" he exclaimed, as May started forward, ready to spit the conclusion at him. "I know - it didn't protect him from the Sentinel agents. He's still a law-abiding kid. They came for him and took him - he could've gotten free in minutes, but he just...let 'em. Until it was too late for him to know what they were gonna do to him."

Rage started to drain away from May, maybe out of sheer exhaustion. "Did he tell you that?"

Stark shook his head. "Not really. He was too incoherent when I got there. But I've talked with some of the, uh, rescue team. Not Cap's exactly. One of his buddies knows some mutants who aren't so keen on seeing their kids put in prison. I didn't know until this happened, that they'd hooked up. Hell, before this happened, I was helping hunt 'em down. Damn it." He dropped his face into his hands again.

"Tony," said Vision. "I will no longer be a party to enforcing the Sokovia Accords in any manner, and I strongly urge you and Colonel Rhodes to consider taking the same position. What we saw on the Raft is unjustifiable."

"Yeah," Stark breathed, still through his hands. "Yeah. Damn. I've gotta go public, just have to figure out how to do it without identifying _any_ of those kids, or the ex - the other guys who helped rescue 'em. God damn. I need to call him. I've got the phone."

Who "him" was, May couldn't guess, but she still had questions buzzing around her head like a swarm of bees. "Why were they torturing him? What the hell was the point of that under these...Accords that he got arrested for violating?" Stark's hands balled into fists against his face, and he didn't answer. Or maybe he couldn't.

" _That,_ I believe, had nothing to do with punishment," said Vision, and now May was certain he was actually angry...but not at Stark this time. "Rather, the United States authorities seem to have elected to make use of the powers some mutants possess. Either they mistook Peter for a mutant or the source of his power made no difference to him, because they also chose him for this process. As with other victims of such treatment, like James Buchanan Barnes, for example, the first step in that process was to..." He looked at Stark.

"To _what_?" May hissed, more in terror than anger. _Why? Why'd they do it? What was the point of starving him and sleep depriving him and burning him?_

Stark answered her in a whisper. "Break them. It was to break them."

May swallowed hard. She thought she knew what they meant, but... _not Peter. They couldn't...wouldn't do that to my baby..._

"The concept appears in fiction and very unpleasant history," said Vision. "I'm afraid your own government, or at least some part of it, engaged in a vicious and unforgivable form of indoctrination, which involves torturing and dehumanizing victims in order to render them suitably pliable for training to operate at their captors' behest."

May put her hands on the wall again and pulled herself along it until she could look through the door at Peter again. He was still asleep. So young. So innocent. He'd cried, babbling, pleading with her about Stark...who could look at him like that and not help him? Who'd look at him like that and hurt him?

" _Your own government..."_

 _"_ What do we do now?" she whispered. "Where do we go? If he's not even safe at school, what do I do?" _How do I protect him? It's my job to protect him - mine, not yours, Tony Stark…but I don't even know how to use a gun!_

"Let me deal with that," said Stark. She bared her teeth at him, but he came toward her. "Listen. You...whatever you think of me, you're right, you are so, so incredibly right. What I've done to him, what I did to get him here - yeah, it's unforgivable. I can't make it right, can't take it back - believe me, I tried before I even understood _why_ I needed to take it back. Damn it."

He was kind of manic, turning from the doorway to May then back to the doorway, then back to May, raising a hand. "But this much, I can do - I can get you away from the Sentinels. In every way - legally, physically, if necessary. God's my witness, I'll get you on a private island with so much security a fucking nuke couldn't touch him. If it comes to that. But I've got contacts and influence of my own, and I am gonna use them, for him and those other kids. I'm stopping this. I'm ending it."

She had no idea whether to believe him. So she just went back into Peter's suite. Stark had the sense not to follow.

* * *

Tony had a very hard time resisting the urge to get drunk after that conversation. He thought about going to the workshop and just smashing shit. Tony hadn't flipped out and gone Hulk on his own workshop in the better part of a decade. Now he wanted to.

 _Fuck every project I'm working on, what good does it do? My tech stays in the hands of lawful authorities, and the lawful authorities use it to kidnap and torture kids. I'm Iron Man, I privatize world peace, I join the Avengers, and we drop buildings on kids and rip countries out of the ground._

 _I should've done what Rogers and I joked about, back in '15. Should've sold everything, trashed the suits, bought a farm. At least with a farm, I couldn't kill anybody...hell, knowing me, I'd find a way._

"Hey, Boss?" It was Happy, looking like he hadn't gotten much more sleep last night than Tony. "Mrs. Parker asked me if I'd pick up that friend of Peter's. Ned Leeds. That okay?"

Tony blinked and rubbed his eyes. "Yeah, sure. Oh, and call the principal...no, forget it. I'll call him." _Gotta take some responsibility for some part of this, Stark._

His call to Jim Morita III was...short. "It's Stark. We found him. He's safe."

 _"Oh, Mr. Stark, thank you so much! Is there anything I can do?_ "

Tony almost just hung up. "I...nuh, I don't think so. Handle any paperwork for him to be absent for awhile, I guess. He's...not gonna be able to come back right away. _"_

 _"Dear God. Can you tell me how bad?_ "

"No." _No medical info except to parents or guardians - whatever, Stark, you already broke that rule eighty ways._ "Sorry." He hung up.

He paced around Peter's medical suite, like a comet in a crazy orbit, sometimes going into different suites, different sections, but always back to look through Peter's door. Aunt May had a bed set up under the window, but she'd fallen asleep in the chair at Peter's bedside, her hand on the kid's. When she moved, Tony fled again so she wouldn't see him. He took the stairs instead of the elevator and paced the floor above, then down to the floor below, then circled back to the medical suite again.

It was just luck that he intercepted Happy returning with Peter's sidekick. The kid looked like he hadn't gotten much sleep in the last ten days either, red-eyed and shaky chin and everything. Tony Stark's whole life was consumed by civilians losing their minds over what Tony had failed to prevent.

"M-Mr. Stark, please...what happened to him?"

Tony took a deep breath while flailing around for how to explain it gently. "We - uh, we found him. He's...look, he doesn't look so good, but he's gonna be okay - "

"Oh, Ned, there you are!" Aunt May was on the warpath again. She came stalking out of the medical suite, eyes flashing, and grabbed the kid by the arm, hard. "So you didn't think I should know Peter was running around getting into fights and skipping school in an alter-ego? I think you oughtta take a look at how that ended up!"

"NO!" Tony lunged forward before even having a chance to think about it and grabbed Ned's free arm. "Uh-uh, hell no, you're not doing that to him!" She swung at Tony, but he caught her wrist, and Happy rushed over and grabbed her shoulders.

"Get off me, you son of a bitch!"

"Please, please, I just wanna see him!" Ned begged.

Tony released the kid, and he and Happy pulled May back into the hall between them. He kicked the infirmary's main door shut and told May, "You wanna blame me, fine. You should, I'm to blame. You're pissed, I get it, you've got every right, but _not_ to take it out on another kid. He didn't understand - " _Didn't understand the stakes anymore than Peter himself did._ Tony forced himself to focus. "You're not torturing _this_ kid for getting in over _his_ head, any more than anybody's torturing Peter for it."

That did it. May's fury gave way to anguish, and her face broke. Tony nodded to Happy, who let her go, and she wrenched away from Tony and sobbed into her hands.

Behind Tony, the kid was breaking down too. "You said - he's gonna b-be okay?"

Tony coughed to clear his own tight throat and ran the back of his hand over his eyes. "Yeah. Yeah, he'll be okay. He's asleep...he hasn't had much sleep, so we don't wanna wake him."

"I won't," Ned gulped out. "But can I - please, can I please just see him for a second?" He turned pleading, wet eyes to Aunt May. "I'm sorry, I'm really, really sorry, I didn't know - n-never thought any-thing like th-this would hap-pen!"

She gave in, went to the kid, and hugged him. Ned babbled on about not wanting her to worry, and Tony and Happy stood there and wondered how the hell they'd managed to wreck these people's lives so completely.

Worse, Tony looked up and saw Pepper in the doorway, watching. When Tony met her eyes, she left again. _Speaking of shit I've wrecked._

With her arm around Ned, May led him to the doorway of the medical suite, and the kid shuddered hard when he saw Peter asleep. She rubbed his back, and a few minutes later, one of the medics came in and ushered them both into the next room to reassure them.

Tony went in to Peter's bedside and sat down. Nothing useful to do but just...be there. On the off chance Peter woke up.

When May reappeared, she glared at Tony until he relinquished the chair. Ned whispered anxiously, "Is - is it okay if I call MJ, just to tell her he's safe now?"

May turned in disbelief. " _MJ_ knew about this?" she hissed.

Ned raised his hands. "No! No, she didn't - well, I think she kinda suspected, but she didn't know. She was just there when those guys took him out of class, and she knew they were shady, and we've kinda been freaking out together ever since."

May sighed and sat down heavily next to Peter. So Tony answered the kid. "Yeah, you can pass the word he's safe, but keep the details to yourself. Until we figure out how to deal with the bastards who did this, I don't want word on the street where he is, got it?"

"Yessir," Ned said.

Tony motioned to Happy. "Take him home."

 _ **To Be Continued...**_

 _ **Coming Soon:**_ _After Wanda's sedation wears off, Peter is in pain and unable to sleep again. So Tony turns for help to doctors experienced with abnormal anatomy, and reunites with the fugitive Avengers and X-Men at Xavier's School for Gifted Youngers - and finds not only treatment for Peter, but hope._

 **PLEASE don't forget to review!**


	9. Chapter 9

_**Author's Notes:**_ _Wow, thank you all so much for the awesome feedback and discussion to last chapter! I've really enjoyed it! With this chapter, our heroes reunite with the X-Men and we at last start to ease off the nonstop angst of the last few chapters!_

 _ **Canon Note:**_ _Dr. Tom Milligan is not exactly an original character. Rather, I borrowed him from another fandom. Anyone know which?_

 **Chapter Nine**

Early in the afternoon, Wanda's voodoo on Peter's brain wore off, and he started to twitch and whimper in his sleep. He calmed down for Aunt May when she petted his hair and whispered in his ear, but he grew gradually more agitated as the day wore on.

Dr. Milligan told Tony, "His metabolism isn't exactly accelerated, not like with Captain Rogers, but he's not responding to pain medication or tranquilizers like he should."

"Well, how many spiders has anybody ever tried to tranquilize?" Tony sighed. "Keep working with R&D. They've gotta be able to come up with something."

 _Or...maybe Dr. Jean Grey of the X-Men has a little more experience with mixing up meds for kids with major abnormalities._

Tony wandered back upstairs and looked at his Starkphone. Jean Grey had an official number; and SHIELD had called her on a few unofficial ones to question her about the X-Men more than once. Tony remembered seeing her on the Raft. They'd talked about taking the kids to the school. _Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters. Some of Ross's people thought we should raid it outright and take everybody into custody for medical testing – including all the kids. Even Rhodey said that was insane and sick._

He could call Xavier's official number and demand that the receptionist get Grey…

...or he could get the fuck over his issues and call that flip phone number he'd vowed to never call. That flip phone had called Tony when Rogers and company found Peter, while Tony was still chasing his tail and losing his mind.

 _Fuck me._ "Friday, call Rogers' phone."

Rogers picked up after one ring. " _Tony? What's going on?"_

"I need help," Tony croaked. "It's Peter, none of our drugs are working on him." _He's in pain, he's scared, I need to make it stop, tell me how to make it stop..._ "I want to talk to Jean Grey - or Wanda, even. I can't just...I need something for him."

" _Wanda's on a mission, but Dr. Grey is here. Hold on, I'll ask for her._ "

Tony stood in uncomfortable silence, and finally remembered to ask, "How're the other kids?"

Rogers sighed. " _Most of them were just scared. They were packed in, three or four to a cell, but they got food and water, and sleep if they had the room. The other four in Peter's section...they're not much better off than he is, I think. My God, Tony, what they were doing to them..._ "

"I know," Tony croaked. He couldn't talk about that unless he wanted to lose his shit to the point that Rogers would hear him. But there was something else that he needed to say. "I traced Peter as far as the Sentinel agents who pulled him out of school and drugged him in the back of a car, but then the trail went cold. Cap..." He had to stop and swallow hard when his voice caught. "…I dunno how long it would've taken me to find him."

There was a long silence, then Steve said in a softer voice, " _You know...you can call me if something like this, anything like this ever happens. If you ever needed help, I'd do anything I could_."

"Yeah. I know." Damn his voice, cracking like this. "And you did. What about Wanda, where is she?"

There was another pause. " _Tony..._ " Now Steve sounded dubious.

"I'm not gonna try to bring her in, Rogers, for shit's sake! I mean - does she need help? Has she got backup? Are the Sentinel agents retaliating?" _Somebody I can beat the shit out of and blow off a little steam?_

 _"Oh. Yeah, she's got backup. Listen...I know you've got the X-Men on your radar, Tony, but I swear to you, all they're doing right now is rescues. Those kids, the conditions they're being held in, there's no excuse._ "

Tony took another deep breath. "I hear you. Vision and I already talked, and I'm gonna talk to Rhodey. We're pulling out of the Accords, and I'm gonna raise holy hell about this."

He wondered what Steve would say to that, but instead, Steve said, " _Hang on, here's Dr. Grey."_

 _"Mr. Stark?"_

"Doc? You have any idea what kind of tranquilizers will work on a kid who got bit by a radioactive spider?"

" _Good lord, I thought that was an urban legend. Our chemists have had a lot of success developing drugs on a variety of mutations. Can you send us a blood sample?"_

Tony started pacing. "Look, he's already a mess and getting worse! Can't you have your teleporter guy bounce you over?"

Grey got that being-patient-with-irrational-people voice. " _Mr. Stark, we've currently got over fifty children who were held in similar conditions as Peter, some for even longer than he was, and all of them have different anatomy due to their mutations. We've also got several of our medical team out trying to rescue more."_

"So only mutants get your attention?" Tony snapped before he could stop himself.

" _No, of course not, that's why I'm asking for a blood sample_ ," she answered calmly. " _I know you're upset and worried about him, and I don't blame you, but I can't drop every other patient I have to pay a house call. Get us a blood sample; you know where we are. I'll extrapolate what formulas work for him as quickly as I can."_

 _Quit arguing with her, Stark, and get the damn blood sample!_ "Okay," he croaked. "I'll bring it." He hung up and headed back down to the medical suite, hoping the kid would still be asleep.

No luck. Peter was awake. "Miss'r Stark?"

Tony forced a smile and tried very, very hard not to look at Aunt May, who was undoubtedly wanting to kick him out of the room the minute he walked in. "Hey, kid. You're looking good. You might just make it to band practice tonight!"

The kid's grin was so damned honest, like he was actually happy to see Tony and Tony'd said something to make him laugh. "Jus' one problem: I quit band last semester."

"Can't imagine why," Aunt May muttered, and _yep,_ those were serious poison-dart glowers she was shooting at Tony.

Tony cut to the chase before Peter could pick up on the tension, and beckoned to Dr. Milligan. "We need a blood sample. I've got some off-site medics who may have more luck getting medications that actually work on you."

Peter obediently held out his arm, but Aunt May tugged it back. " _What_ medics?"

"May!" the kid protested.

She visibly forced herself to calm down and petted his hair. "Peter, I don't like your blood samples flying all over the place after what those - those - _people_ did to you."

"Huh?" Peter looked from her to Tony in complete confusion.

Dr. Milligan put his tools down and asked Peter carefully, "Do you remember a blood test being done at the police station, the day they took you out of school."

Frowning to himself, Peter shook his head. "N-no...I don't...remember a lot from that, actually. I should... why don't I...?"

May shot Dr. Milligan a panicked look, but he explained, "They sedated you very heavily to move you to the pri- the detention center. That may have affected your memory, and you're still quite behind on sleep."

Tony told May, "Look, I don't want his blood samples flying around either, but even medics for the Avengers aren't all _that_ experienced in completely altered anatomy. The X-Men...the team that helped Cap and his crew get those kids out, they work with mutants. All different kinds of mutations, all different kinds of kids. They can come up with medications for Peter's systems in a fraction of the time."

"Can't one of them come here?"

"I asked, but they've got a few dozen patients at their...clinic, and their staff is stretched thin. It doesn't help that they're all wanted by the Sentinels _because_ they're mutants," he added bitterly. "And part of that's my fault."

Peter had nodded off again. May sighed and shook her head. "Fine," she muttered. "You better be on top of this now."

"Aun' May, don' yell attim!" Oh, so maybe Peter hadn't quite nodded off.

Aunt May kissed Peter on the temple while Dr. Milligan drew blood. "Sorry, baby. I'm snapping at everybody. I haven't gotten any sleep either, y'know."

"Knew 'e'd find me...knew it...y'can trust 'm..." Peter murmured. Tony stood there with a pasted-on half-smile that fooled nobody in possession of all their faculties (thank God that Peter definitely wasn't), and Aunt May just cuddled the kid until he was out again.

When Dr. Milligan handed Tony the vial, he waited for May's permission. She stared at him, then muttered, "It's not like I can stop you."

"No, but I'm asking," he said. His voice was actually steady.

"Fine. Take it. He'll start trying to be brave soon. He did that before he was ever 'Spider-Man'."

 _I believe you._ But Tony said nothing, just headed for the suit that was already waiting with a kit to carry the vial, and took off for Westchester.

* * *

Steve benched Bucky from the next rescue mission, which irritated him – and also benched himself, which irritated Bucky even more. It wasn't just protectiveness; Steve was distracted far too easily when he and Bucky were separated, and knew it. Scott Summers was a good team leader, and after the Raft, Steve let him lead the joint rescue team with no reservation.

None of the remaining targets were anywhere near the size and capacity of the Raft, but the X-Men needed help continuing their rescues, given that the school's student body had almost tripled in size in a matter of weeks.

So once the smaller Avengers/X-Men rescue team left for the next detention center, Steve let Bucky have his space and volunteered for any and all babysitting gigs to keep the uninjured kids amused and calm.

Bucky rejoined him shortly after the call from Tony. "Any word from T'Challa?"

"Not since the team left. He called Storm this morning to say they'd all made it safely to Wakanda. He's trying to track down the non-American kids' families, help them get to a new place where they can reunite."

They were distracted by a group of kids who were fascinated by Bucky's arm (and Bucky was far less self-conscious about the vibranium replacement with no mark to suggest that it belonged to anyone). So they passed the next hour peacefully outside with the kids.

That ended when the familiar sound of Iron Man's rockets had everyone looking up. "I think I better not be visible," Bucky muttered.

Steve nodded. "Go inside."

"Are you crazy?" Bucky snapped. "I'm not hiding behind a bunch of kids!"

They compromised with Bucky trying to move down the grounds away from the main buildings, but then a bunch of the kids playing outside recognized Iron Man as he approached.

Anywhere else, kids would flock towards Tony and make his landings difficult - it had been really funny to watch at times.

Not at Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters. Some of the younger kids started to scream. That in turn panicked more kids, and Steve and Bucky gave up their own efforts at discretion to try and prevent a stampede.

" _Hey, hey!"_ Tony exclaimed, his voice amplified by the suit's speakers. " _Kids, kids, chill out, I'm not here to hurt anybody!_ "

"It's okay!" shouted Steve and some of the adult teachers, rushing to corral the kids as they bottlenecked at the doors.

 _Everyone calm down!_

Steve and Bucky jumped. They still weren't used to hearing voices in their heads. But most of the kids did calm down, at least enough to let the really panicked ones inside first, and calm was restored on campus. Tony raised his visor and frowned at them. "What was...that?"

"That was telepathy, Mr. Stark," said Rogue, coming across the grass to meet him. "Dr. Grey's down in the infirmary, but she told me you were coming."

Tony kept staring at the kids. Even the ones who hadn't run were watching him with unmistakable fear in their eyes. Their whispers of " _Iron Man_ " weren't the awestruck chatter that Tony Stark would normally hear from children.

The armor folded off him into a small box on the ground, though the sudden noise and movement sent another flurry of panicked kids sprinting for cover. Tony stepped free and bent to lift a smaller package from the top of it. "That better?"

"Yes, thank you," said Rogue. "This way."

Casting a long look at Steve and Bucky, Tony followed her.

Bucky gave Steve a light shove from behind. "Go."

"Buck, I don't know - "

" - you are such an ass sometimes, Rogers," Bucky huffed, and shoved him harder. " _Go._ I'll keep an eye on the kids."

Steve relented and went into the mansion. He caught up with Rogue and Tony as they came out of the elevator into the very busy sub-basement that housed the infirmary. There were cots lining the walls, most of them occupied. Whimpers and sobs could be heard amid the hushed conversation. It was like a war hospital, and all the victims were children.

When he'd first stepped into this place, Steve had reacted a lot like Tony did now: reeling backwards in disbelief and horror. A very rumpled and tired Jean Grey came out of one of the exam rooms. "Now do you see why I couldn't come myself?"

"I – I - " Tony moved haltingly towards her, case in hand. "Can you – can I - "

She took it and answered the question he couldn't remember how to put into words. "If you know doctors who aren't frightened or offended by mutants, and who wouldn't start talking about what we do here, we'd welcome the extra manpower."

But Tony's expression grew more stricken. "I don't…I know doctors, but I've never asked how they feel about mutants."

Dr. Grey wasn't surprised. "Well, then the only thing we ask if that _you_ not disclose it, for reasons that should be obvious." She looked down at the silver case in her hand. "We have some programs that have been developed to decipher a mutant's blood chemistry very quickly, so we can work out the chemical formulas for medications. It shouldn't be that different for Spider-Man, mutant or not. We'll let you know as soon as we have results." She walked away.

Rogue went back to assisting Dr. Grey, leaving the two Avengers to take the scene in. Few kids down here recognized Tony, but those who did whispered his name in fear, not awe or excitement. Tony looked at Steve and breathed, "What the hell is happening here?"

"War," said Steve. He rubbed his eyes and tried not to look at anybody too much. "That's not how they describe it – hell, they make an effort to _not_ call it that. But that's sure what it looks like. When we first got here three weeks ago, there were about twenty kids down here in really bad shape, like Peter and the others we pulled out of the Raft's 'special program'. Since then there've been seven missions to these Sentinel detention centers. The Raft was just the biggest. Now there's almost sixty. And that's _just_ the kids. There're adults too, but not as many as I expected. I guess the Sentinels don't consider it worth the risk. Cyclops and his team thinks most of the adult mutants are better at hiding their powers, or if they're caught, they wind up dead pretty quick."

A couple of kids started to cry nearby, and Steve winced at hearing someone whisper, "It's okay, nobody'll let him hurt you!"

Tony turned on his heel and practically jumped back into the elevator. Steve followed. One the doors closed, Tony muttered, "So I'm the boogeyman to these kids? Because of the Accords?"

"I haven't been talking about you that way, if that's what you mean," said Steve. "I don't think it's just the Accords, though. I guess a lot of these Sentinel agents and mutant hunters like your old tech."

Tony leaned hard against the back wall of the elevator. "Or my newer tech. I designed the 'law enforcement aids' that they used on Peter _after_ we formed the Avengers. I figured I was helping, y'know? Serving the cause of justice and all. Non-lethal, all of it…until they get their prisoners 'contained' where they want 'em, then do whatever they want with 'em."

The doors opened to reveal a man in a wheelchair. Steve couldn't quite hold back a grin. _Thank God, I was really hoping you'd talk to him._

 _I know you were._ "Mr. Stark? I'm Charles Xavier. May we talk before you return to the city?"

* * *

Wanda and the rest of the Secret Avengers returned from their mission to a warning that Tony Stark was at the school. "They let him come _there?!_ " demanded Scott in disbelief.

Sam shrugged. "It's not like he can't find the place on a map, but letting him inside…yeah, I wouldn't. But they swear Xavier knows what he's doing. I hope to hell they're right."

The X-Jet got the prime parking spot under the basketball court, but the Quinjet landed on the soccer field. After ushering their passengers – another nineteen mutant detainees – into the building, the Avengers mingled with the kids and teachers outside. "I hear Professor Xavier's been talking to Stark for a long time," said Cyclops. "That's a good sign."

The Secret Avengers all shrugged.

Wanda saw Bucky sitting on a low wall watching a group of girls playing basketball. He'd been downright shy around the children at first, but Professor Xavier had told him, " _You're not the first person we've met who was coerced into doing horrific things, James. Sadly, I doubt you'll be the last, and the students here are glad of any and all adult attention. There are ten of them for every one of us at the best of times, and right now, even are best-adjusted students are struggling to cope."_

So when they weren't on mission prep, Bucky'd slowly begun interacting with them. He was still quiet, but stepped in as babysitter/referee for groups of them, like now. He tossed the ball back when it bounced in his direction, and if a squabble broke out about a play, he smiled and made the call.

Funny how amid so much suffering and uncertainty, there was joy to be found. Steve had been over the moon the first time he saw Bucky on a bench with a group of kids playing Dungeons & Dragons at his feet.

 _"_ _There's beauty up there, that no shadow can touch,"_ Samwise had told Frodo in The Lord of the Rings. Wanda and Pietro had loved those movies. She'd remembered that speech when she saw the look on Steve's face the first time Bucky laughed at the antics of the kids.

After Leipzig, she'd thought she'd lost everything, from parents to brother to freedom to dignity and every last shred of humanity. Somehow, after Steve had taken them from the Raft, she'd learned it wasn't the end. In Wakanda, after all the death she'd caused, she'd had the chance to help Bucky Barnes come back to life. And in the process, she'd gotten herself back.

Bucky was free now. Free of Hydra's grip on his mind, free of Hydra's mark on his arm. When Wanda saw Bucky and Steve together, she ached with missing Pietro.

There were dozens of children here who'd outlived their siblings. There were even a few twins. Wanda wasn't sure if someone had said something, but they all gravitated towards each other, like magnetism, and Wanda gravitated toward them. Today was no exception, and she was on the edge of the basketball court with nearly ten kids sitting on the pavement around her, making commentary on the various basketball games when Stark reappeared.

He looked exhausted. Even from fifty yards away, to Wanda, he _felt_ exhausted, and the self-recriminations he always wore like an invisible cape covered him now like a shroud. Finally, he understood what he'd gotten Peter Parker into, when he'd approached the boy to come to Germany, and now it was too late. Stark felt...a great deal like Wanda often felt about herself, for the things she'd done to people.

But Stark wasn't ready to bury himself anymore. He and Steve were walking easily, side by side, in conversation with Professor Xavier. Mutants weren't the only people who could be convinced by Professor Xavier that all hope wasn't lost. Tony, like Wanda, was still grieving, still ashamed, still enraged...but he could see the future again.

Professor Xavier must have said something similar to Stark that he'd said to Wanda, Steve, Bucky, and the rest of the Secret Avengers.

 _We can end this. Together._ When Professor Xavier said it, it didn't seem so impossible as Wanda had recently thought.

The kids murmured among themselves curiously at the amicable discussion between Avengers and X-Men on the terrace. Then, as Stark was saying his farewells, Bucky abruptly made a choice and walked towards them. Wanda scrambled to her feet and followed.

"Stark."

It was the mental equivalent of a record scratch, Tony hearing the voice of Bucky Barnes, speaking directly to him. He stopped sharply and turned, uncertain he'd really heard it...then he saw Bucky and that cold fire returned to his consciousness.

Wanda kept going until she was at Bucky's side, just behind him. Steve flanked Bucky on the other side.

Many of the onlookers held their breath.

Bucky asked calmly, "The kid. How is he?"

Tony wanted to be a stone. He wanted to turn around and walk away and refuse to say anything, anything at all to this man, this killer, this...but the stone had already cracked, and even for hate of James Barnes, Tony couldn't restore it. Not here, not in front of all these kids, not in front of these people he'd been helping to hunt down and branding as terrorists. And not after what this man had done for Peter Parker.

So Tony remembered to breathe before he passed out and made himself answer. "He needs a lot of rest. But the medics say he'll be okay."

Bucky nodded. Wanda slipped her hand into his, and he shot her a small smile. That broke the spell over Tony, and he went quickly back to reenter his armor. The kids whispered and chattered as Iron Man re-formed, then roared off into the sky.

"How'd it go, Charles?" asked Scott Summers.

"Mr. Stark has had many misconceptions corrected today, and he now fully supports our rescue missions. He intends to force the repeal of the Sokovia Accords and their enacting laws, and will provide us with all the political protection that he can." Professor Xavier said. He came down the terrace ramp to join the Secret Avengers and told Bucky, "James, I told Mr. Stark that along with the many mutants we've rescued, you also have sanctuary here for as long as you wish. He's not going to contest that."

Bucky sighed, released Wanda's hand and turned around. "Thank you, Professor. But you know I can't stay."

"The kids're getting to like you, you know," Steve prodded, but they all knew the answer.

"I'm still wanted by half the world, and even people who might hesitate to attack a school full of kids would decide it's worth the risk if they knew I was here. I can't. And," he jerked his head at Steve, "somebody's gotta keep this guy out of trouble."

"What are the Avengers, chopped liver?" Sam protested.

"You cause as many incidents as you stop, Tinkerbell."

 _"Oooooh!_ " the watching kids chorused. Sam and Bucky launched into a debate peppered with increasingly-elaborate insults, the kids cheered them on, and Avengers and X-Men laughed.

 _ **To Be Continued:**_ _Thanks to the X-Men, Tony now has medications that will help Peter sleep, but there's a problem - Peter's afraid to use them. Then Pepper returns to the compound, but her plan to have it out with Tony gets derailed when Peter overhears and decides to set a few things straight about who's really responsible for Spider-Man!_

 **PLEASE don't forget to review!**


	10. Chapter 10

_**Author's Notes:**_ _Many thanks to everyone for all the wonderful feedback and discussion! Please keep it coming!_

 **Chapter Ten**

Coming from anybody else, Charles Xavier's candid awareness of Tony's thoughts would have been really fucking creepy. Okay, it still was really fucking creepy, but something about the guy made Tony feel a lot less unsettled than Wanda's access to his thoughts did.

" _You're one of many people who have made choices they now deeply regret, with consequences they either failed to anticipate or chose to ignore,_ " Xavier had said. " _Even the most powerful of my team, with all their variety, can't turn back time and change the past - and even if they could, that would be an even worse answer._ " Tony'd had to laugh. " _All we can do is move forward, and you, Tony, are in a unique position to make a greater impact than most._ "

 _"How do I keep 'moving forward' when everything I do to fix what I've broken just fucks things up even worse?"_ Tony'd asked.

Xavier's shocked sensibilities had been feigned. " _Mr. Stark, language, really!_ "

Tony'd burst out laughing. " _No wonder Cap likes you._ "

Steve had huffed, but it had been playful, but Xavier had grinned. " _Steve will forgive me for telling you that during the war, his mouth was even fouler than yours, as long as he wasn't near a camera."_ At Tony's shock, Steve and Xavier had both started chuckling, and Tony soon hadn't been able to hold it back.

Then his chest had gone tight, because it felt like such a long damn time since Tony Stark and Steve Rogers had laughed together at anything. Let alone at themselves.

They'd talked for a long time. By the end of it, Tony had no longer felt like he was drowning in an ocean of innocent blood. The conversation had finally wound to a close only when Rogue came in to deliver Jean Grey's results.

Even if Jean Grey had come to the compound herself, Tony would never have predicted that she would identify medication formulas for Peter within four hours of testing his blood samples. But he left Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters with a bigger case, full of syringes and a thumb drive detailing all their formulas for his own medical staff.

 _Those people could make billions off their research. Instead they're packed into the basement of an old mansion, doing triage for tortured kids._

"Friday, prep a company-wide memo: Stark Industries is ending all of our law enforcement contracts in the US as well as all remaining military contracts for anything that could be used in any way for capture of humans. Tell Pepper to get PR prepared for a big blow-up with the State Department. Vision and I are withdrawing from the Sokovia Accords, and we're gonna tell the world why."

 _"Got it, Boss. Colonel Rhodes has read Vision's report on the Raft. He's also preparing a position statement that if the Avengers remain subject to the Accords or their enacting legislation, then he's retiring from the Avengers immediately and returning the War Machine armor to you -_ not _Stark Industries. To you personally._ "

Surprised, Tony mused, "That's quite the vote of confidence, considering the mess I've got us all into - _again._ Does he know about Peter?"

 _"Yes, Boss. He, ah, did leave a message for you while you were out."_

"Oh boy. Well, get it over with."

Rhodey's angry voice played: _"Tony...in Germany, you're telling me Spider-Man was fifteen?! FIFTEEN?! For fuck's sake!_ " (Click.)

Tony grimaced "Yeah, I had that coming." Like the rest of Tony's team in Germany, Rhodey had never seen Peter's face...which was kind of fucked-up in its own right, and Tony couldn't swear that he hadn't done that deliberately. _To keep anybody with more scruples than me from putting up a hand and asking what the fuck is a fifteen-year-old doing anywhere near this confrontation?_

Returning to the compound, Tony brought the meds to Dr. Cho. "You mind looking in on Peter Parker downstairs?"

"Not at all," she said, but as she turned to examine the case's contents, the silence hung thick between them.

Tony looked out the window. "I saw your other patient today. He's up and around."

"Good." Helen peered at him over the tablet. "I'm familiar with the X-Men, just so you know. Jean Grey and Hank McCoy's work on genetic cellular abnormalities overlaps a great deal with mine on regeneration."

"Mm." Tony'd been convinced after seeing the school and talking to Xavier…but it couldn't hurt to get a second opinion. "So you trust them?"

"Yes. The fact that they're mutants doesn't make them or anyone else inherently untrustworthy."

"I know _being_ mutants doesn't. What about this group's activities?"

She shrugged, with a casualness belied by the dead-serious look in her eyes. "Their activities are no different from what the Avengers do. I see no reason why you should have a monopoly."

Tony had to smile. "Touché. Yeah, I met them today. Along with Peter, they've rescued a couple hundred mutant kids, a lot in conditions just like him. It's not just about suppression - though there's plenty of that, and it's gross too - there's a bigger goal with what those 'detention centers' are doing to those kids."

Helen sorted through the syringes, typing into her computer, and paused only briefly to meet Tony's eyes. "Should I be the one to say something harsh again?"

Tony snorted. "Believe me, everyone else who knows has ripped me a new one for bringing a fifteen-year-old to Germany. I know I fucked up, and I'm the reason this happened to him."

"That's not what I was going to say, though I'm glad you know those things," she said wryly. Putting all but two syringes into refrigeration, Helen stood up. "What you saw in that prison, what was being done to Peter and the other children - sleep deprivation, drugs, sensory overload - that was the first step in the process that turned James Barnes into the Winter Soldier. He was no more willing to be a part of that process than Peter was."

Heat rose up in Tony's chest. He wanted to argue, _You don't know that! Nobody knows that!_ He wanted to brush it off and figure that was just another one of Cap's fans who wanted to see him happy with his BFF and didn't think anything Barnes had done should matter. But the heat wasn't just anger anymore, and it was all mixed up with other emotions. Tony Stark did not _do_ so many damn emotions! So he just muttered, "You're a neurology expert now?"

"I'm not, no, but I employ several and work closely with several others, including physicians working with Dr. Grey and Dr. McCoy who've treated mutant victims of memory tampering and brainwashing. Mutants and inhumans are frequent targets of operators of those programs. James Barnes and Peter Parker are actually rather unique, in that they weren't born enhanced."

"Yeah?" Tony snapped. "So you're saying there are lots of mutant and inhuman brainwashed assassins who run around as highly-trained murder zombies and aren't responsible for what they do?"

Helen didn't even blink. "Not 'lots,' no. But they exist. I've met a few. Their stories are enough to cause nightmares, to say nothing of their brain scans."

Tony couldn't deal with this now. He turned away. "I haven't got time for this. Peter Parker's my priority."

"Fine. I've identified the medications most likely to be effective with the least chance of side effects - I'm going with Jean Grey's recommendation. We'll try those first and see how Peter does." Helen walked past him for the elevator.

* * *

Every time a new person came into the medical suite, May got tense, and Peter could tell she was restraining herself from barking questions or demands at all of them. Well, why shouldn't she be a little defensive? She didn't know any of these people.

Thanks to Peter, she'd been thrown into this insane world of Avengers and chaos and fights to the death and...whatever the hell it was that government agents had decided to do to Peter, all without any warning.

 _If she'd known I was Spider-Man, she wouldn't let me do any of it anymore...or even if she did, all she could do is worry!_ Well, that the hell did Peter think May'd been doing for the past two weeks? Remodeling the apartment? She looked almost as exhausted and sick as Peter felt.

May's arm around him tightened when a stranger came in with Mr. Stark. The woman smiled warmly. "Peter, Mrs. Parker, I'm Dr. Helen Cho. I'm the Avengers' primary physician."

Peter had heard of her, but never met her. He relaxed, but May didn't. "Peter's not an Avenger," May said.

"No, of course not," said Dr. Cho, shooting a sidelong look at Mr. Stark. There were a lot of looks like that being thrown at Mr. Stark. "But I don't only treat them, I treat anyone they bring to me. I'm sorry I wasn't here to help you yesterday. One of the team was seriously injured and needed emergency surgery, but Dr. Milligan kept me informed. We put our heads together with a few experts and got some medications that should take the edge off the pain, and help Peter sleep."

But where May was calming down, now it was Peter's turn to tense up. "Drugs?"

"I know your wrists hurt, and even sixteen hours straight isn't going to make up for the ten days you were held," said Dr. Cho. "You need several full nights of uninterrupted sleep, and after what you've been through, that's naturally very difficult." She caught the way Peter was leaning away from her. "Is this okay?"

 _Can I say no?_ "Peter, don't try to be brave," May urged. "You don't have to be all stoic less than a day after - after that."

"'m not, really, I just..." _I remember that when there wasn't noise and flashing lights and my eyes duct taped open, there were needles. Then I saw things and everything hurt more and sounded louder. Then I couldn't feel anything and felt like I was floating outside my body and was I dead? Couldn't tell how much time, couldn't tell where...couldn't..._

May's fingers ran through his hair. It still felt gritty and nasty, hell, all of him felt that way even though the doctors had given had given him a sponge bath. May didn't seem to care, and that was kind of weird. She would usually mock-gag and order him to the shower if he came home even a little sweaty, now she was cuddling him like he was six again. The truth was, he was kind of glad she was cuddling him. It felt good. It almost made him feel like he might be safe.

Dr. Cho abruptly left along with Dr. Milligan, and after a long hesitation, Mr. Stark left too. May held Peter tighter. "You can tell me. Why don't you want to sleep? Nightmares?"

Peter's throat got too humiliatingly tight to talk, and he shook his head. Nightmares weren't something he was looking forward to, and there were a lot when he did manage to doze off, but he was tired enough not to care about that. The thought of nightmares was nothing.

He clutched her hand, and she whispered, "Squeeze as hard as you want."

 _I can't, I'll break your hand..._ For some reason, that did it, and a sob burst out of him. She shifted fully onto the bed and pulled him across her lap, and he let her, because it was coming out now and all the muscle and web in the world wasn't going to stop it. He tried to clap his free hand over his mouth, but the sobs wrenched free, one by one, shaking his whole body and forcing through his voice. She could hear him, she could feel him breaking, and he couldn't do anything about it.

"It's okay. Just let it out. I'm here, baby, and I love you so much."

He let go and cried harder than the night after Ben's funeral. He'd hidden his face in a pillow that night then so May wouldn't hear him, but she'd come into his room. He'd tried so hard to stop so she wouldn't see or hear - she'd lost her husband, it wasn't fair that she had to take care of Peter - but he couldn't, and she'd sat down and held him. He hadn't been able to hold it back then either. But even though he hadn't been able to stop, it'd been calmer than this, quieter. Maybe because by the time the funeral was over, he'd had time to really think about it, and _know_ Ben was gone.

Now the sobs had a _force_ to them, and he couldn't seem to calm them down. His whole body shook with each of them.

At...some point...in the prison, he'd broken like this. Maybe...maybe more than once? He couldn't remember. But it had hurt so much and he'd been begging them to stop and he was so tired, and trying to figure out what it was they _wanted,_ and finally it'd all crumbled down into sobs, almost screams of misery. _Pleasepleasepleaseplease stop please let me go pleaseplease I'll do anything stopstopstopstop I can't do it can't take it please..._

He was safe now. May was here. He was in the Avengers headquarters. It was impregnable, no one could get to him here, it was okay. But he couldn't stop crying and he didn't know why.

Why...all of it? _Why'd they do this?_ He knew why they'd done it to him...sort of. _Because I'm Spider-Man...but why do it to Spider-Man? Why do it to those other kids? Why?_

After what felt like a really long time, he lay exhausted and silent across May's legs and had to be crushing her, but he wasn't strong enough to sit up...and too selfish to want to. It'd all come gushing out, and he could talk again and didn't have to worry about it breaking him, because there wasn't anything left inside to come out.

"I don' want drugs," he mumbled. "'cause they used 'em. Needles."

May moved a little, made a noise...he looked up, but she'd leaned back and was looking away, so he couldn't see her face.

The door opened, and Peter hastily wiped at his face with the blanket. It was Dr. Cho. "Feel any better?" she asked.

May said in a rough voice, "He doesn't want injections because they - used needles..." She couldn't finish.

Peter winced. He hated knowing he'd made her so miserable. But she wasn't entirely right; maybe he'd just said it wrong. "Stuff they gave me, drugs...it made me feel weird..." _Hurt...crazy...made me feel all kinds of things..._ "I don't want to not be me anymore."

"I understand. Believe me. And I'm not going to force you, okay? I promise that; we all do."

"Thanks," Peter murmured, drained. His eyes were heavy. Maybe he could sleep without drugs.

Dr. Cho started talking to May about his blood tests and what they'd found in his system. Peter was anxious at first, but she said he was already clear of most of it and it'd keep getting better...and he gradually lost the ability to pay attention. The murmur of their voices was nice...

* * *

He jerked awake and tried to cover his ears...

"Peter, hey, it's okay!"

May. He was still lying across her lap. "Ungh...sorry...must be crushing you."

She laughed. "You're not nearly as big and heavy as you think you are, Peter Parker. Though now that you're up, I'm gonna get up."

"'mmkay." He managed to shift himself so she could get up. It was dark. "Wha' time is it?" He asked when she returned from the bathroom.

"Dunno, one a.m., maybe."

"Aw, May, you shouldn've sat that long!" he protested.

May huffed and flopped back into the armchair next to the bed. "Kiddo, do you know how badly I wanted to sit up a few hours with you the past couple of weeks? Give me all the stiff backs in the world, you hear me?"

He couldn't say anything to that. Well, except... "Missed you." Damn it, why was his throat doing this again? He'd already cried all over her and scared everybody else out of the room! He looked away, but held out his hand so she wouldn't feel bad, and she took it.

"How're you feeling now?"

"Better," he lied. "Still, y'know. Tired."

"Peter..." Uh-oh, she had _that_ tone. He had a feeling she hadn't worked up to yelling at him yet, which meant this was something else. "Dr. Cho told me a little about those medications."

 _Wait, I changed my mind, please, please, yell at me about Spider-Man!_ He managed not to cringe.

"You're going to have a lot of trouble sleeping, and I do think those medications'll help. They're not like...whatever the Sentinel agents gave you at the detention center."

Peter shook his head. "I can sleep. I'll sleep. I don't..." _Please don't make me._

"Okay. She meant what she said; we're not going to give you anything if you don't want it. I just want you to know it's an option, if things...get bad."

"I can sleep," he insisted. Nobody was blasting death metal or just _noise_ so loud that his ears felt like they were bleeding, nobody was taping his eyes open and constantly flashing the lights to blind him and scorch his retinas. Nobody had shackled his arms and legs away from his body and dressed him in what felt like sandpaper against his skin. He'd sleep just fine. Probably. "You don't have to sit up with me," he said, seeing the other bed. "Really." He feigned sleepiness he didn't quite feel, even though he was tired down to the center of every cell in his body.

After a few minutes, May gave in, and Peter shut his eyes and concentrated on breathing deep, curling up just as if he was at home in bed and she was looking in on him. After twenty minutes or so, usually she'd go...

...but instead, after twenty minutes, he heard her breath hitching. So quiet, so careful not to wake him - _no! Nonononno!_

He burst out of bed and nearly ripped the IV out of his arm trying to get to her. "May, no, don't!"

May yelped in surprise and fell off her bed - or sort of scrambled off and then tripped over the blankets. In any case, the two of them wound up on the floor next to each other, with alarms going off on the medical equipment and pounding feet in the hallway.

As a nurse burst into the room, Peter couldn't help it...he started laughing. May, despite the tears still on her face, grinned, and soon they were both giggling helplessly as they untangled him from the bedclothes and IV lines.

With Peter back in bed, May went back to the chair, and the moment of humor passed all too fast. "'m sorry," he whispered. "May, I'm so sorry."

"Shhh. We're both allowed to do some crying." She rubbed his cheek. "I'll yell at you later. Go to sleep."

* * *

Pepper got back to headquarters at the same time as Rhodey. " _Tell me_ you didn't know how old that kid was."

The outrage on Rhodey's face was a relief. "Are you kidding? Hell, I should've asked. Y'know - I _did_ ask, but by then we were trying to bring down Rogers' giant friend in Leipzig. Kid called Empire Strikes Back a 'really old movie.' Tony said 'on the young side,' I figured, hell, maybe a little shy of eighteen or nineteen."

Pepper sighed and leaned against the elevator wall. "That's what I thought too, when Tony told me Spider-Man was a kid. A 'kid' as in Wanda Maximoff's age. When Tony brought him in the day before yesterday..." That was a sight that was going to stay with her until her dying day, and Pepper Potts had seen some unpleasant sights after so long with Tony Stark. _So skinny, so scared, so hurt. Who the hell would do a thing like that?_

"Pepper?"

She blinked back to the present. "Anyway, Tony's given plenty of marching orders, but he doesn't seem to have time to _talk._ " _And this is supposed to surprise either of us?_ "Hell, I don't even care that much. But there's one conversation I need to have in person, and I'm not waiting any longer. I should've done it then."

Rhodey realized what she meant and cringed, but at her warning look, he didn't dare try to talk her out of it.

Part of Pepper was glad he'd come. He'd have some very loud words for Tony too, but… _also be there for him_ , whispered a traitorous little voice that she was trying to burn away from the heat of her anger. _No more. No more. This is it. I can't deal with this anymore. The company, yes, even Iron Man, yes, but not you and me. Not after this._

" _Mr. Stark is on the infirmary floor, Ms. Potts_ ," said Friday.

Pepper sighed. "Is he in with the kid?"

" _No, he's currently outside Peter's suite_."

"Okay." That would have to do. It wasn't like there was much to say.

She caught herself from stalking out of the elevator at full speed; Rhodey still couldn't walk very fast. Tony could damn well spare thirty seconds to talk to Pepper in private, and if he wouldn't, he'd have to deal with the presence of witnesses.

Tony didn't even look up when she came in. "Hey, guys, I'm a little busy right now."

" _Seriously?_ " Before Pepper could pull together a response, Rhodey nearly exploded. "I hear about all this third-hand from Pepper and Vision?!"

"Yeah, so sorry if I'm in the middle of trying to _fix it_ ," Tony retorted – still without looking up.

Somehow that made Pepper feel icy calm. "Fine. Keep on with fixing it. I'll be in my office." That got his attention, and he looked up as she came toward him. "I just came to give you back your ring."

She didn't expect the panic on Tony's face - surely it wasn't that much of a surprise! Then there was a THUD from down the hall, and Tony hissed, " _Pepper,_ he's got enhanced hearing!"

Pepper's heart dropped, and she didn't have time to blurt out more than, "Oh shit!" before the medical suite door burst open, and a frantic teenaged boy came barreling out.

"No! No, no, you can't, don't break up with him, not over this!"

The kid's aunt and Dr. Cho came running out after him. "Peter, what're you doing?!"

"Peter, you're going to collapse!"

Tony jumped in front of Pepper, hands raised placatingly. "Hey, kiddo, hey, take it easy. It's fine."

"It's _not fine_!" Peter shot back. He looked past Tony at Pepper, desperate and teary-eyed, and, _oh god_ , Pepper had no idea what to do. "It's not his fault, it's not," he babbled. "I'm not legal, but I'm not a freaking toddler either!"

"HEY!" Tony stood his ground as Peter's aunt and Dr. Cho tried to tug the kid backwards by the arms. "Peter, kid, hey. Look at me. I get it, seeing - uh - y'know, celebrity break-ups is kind of painful, but c'mon! We're grown-ups, this is what happens. I did some stupid things, I've gotta deal with consequences, okay? I'll live, I promise. It's not the end of the world - "

"But it WASN'T you!" Peter yelled, and flashed from desperation to rage while Pepper was still trying to figure out how to get out of this. "They all talk like you - you - turned me into something and you DIDN'T! _You_ didn't make Spider-Man, _I_ made Spider-Man, on my own before you or the Avengers knew I existed!" He rounded on his aunt when she tried to wade into the chaos. "It _wasn't him!_ Aunt May, it was me! He didn't do this, I made Spider-Man! _I_ did! You all talk like - like I'm some kinda robot! Yeah, fine, I'm a kid, I'm a dumb kid, but I'm not a dancing monkey! He didn't do anything but give me what I already wanted, and when he took it away 'cause I was being too stupid, I kept on going on my own! I woulda been Spider-Man without him, and I _was_ Spider-Man without him!" He gulped in a breath, and his face crumpled, and _no, no, no_ , Pepper could not deal with this. Thank God he was looking at his aunt rather than at Pepper as he started to break down. "May...they'd've come for me anyway! 'f he'd never seen me, they'd've found me, 'cause I was always Spider-Man, 's not his fault! 's mine! I'was me!"

"No." Tony wasn't a touchy-feely man (unless there was a good-looking woman involved). So Pepper was completely unprepared to see him take the kid by the shoulders and gently turn him back to meet Tony's eyes. "No, Peter, look at me. _Look at me,_ kid. Uh-uh. I mean - yeah, you're right, you're absolutely right about part of that. _You_ made Spider-Man, you're him, and you deserve a hell of a lot of credit. People'd be dead today if it weren't for you, and a lot more'd be worse off. But listen to me. _Do not_ start thinking what happened two weeks ago was your fault, that you're to blame. You're not. I don't give a damn what the Accords said, being Spider-Man wasn't wrong, and even if you'd broken a thousand laws, you wouldn't've deserved what those bastards did to you. Not you, not those other kids. Someone else decided kidnapping and torturing teenagers was a good idea; that's on _them._ You hear me? Not you. Never any of you."

Silence fell, broken by ragged breathing from, well, everybody in the room. Peter stared at Tony, and Tony held his gaze and his grip and didn't even twitch. Pepper'd never seen Tony like that before.

It was the kid who broke it, looking past Tony at Pepper, and Tony gave his shoulders a little squeeze. "Look," Tony said, more softly, more gently than Pepper thought him capable of. "I didn't just make a suit to help out the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man, Pete. I did some ugly things to you without you even realizing I was doing 'em. Getting you into that fight in Germany was wrong, the way I did it was wrong, and what I did after was wrong."

"I _wanted_ to - "

" - sure you did. Who doesn't want attention from a billionaire and upgrades to his homemade costume, the chance to fight the good fight? You forgetting that first you said no, and I threatened to tell Aunt May?"

Peter's face fell. Obviously he hadn't forgotten. "But I did good," he protested weakly. "I didn't get hurt, not really."

The silence was longer that time, to the point that Pepper wondered what they were both thinking about. Finally, Tony sighed. "Yeah. You did good, and you didn't get hurt – but you could've been. And the thing is - you didn't understand anything about _why_ we were fighting. I treated it like need-to-know, but you _did_ need to know if you were gonna make a real decision. If you had known...hell. You wouldn't have gone with me if you did."

"That's not true!"

"C'mon, Parker, you are just. like. Cap," scoffed Tony. Peter blinked. "You remember what you told me that day, about why you're Spider-Man?"

Peter swallowed and nodded. "If you can do what I can do and don't, and something bad happens because you didn't do anything, it's your fault. That wasn't 'cause of you, though. I believed that…earlier."

Tony took a deep breath and shut his eyes. He hadn't let go of Peter. "The minute you said that, I knew that if you knew why Cap was doing what he was doing, you wouldn't go with me. I wanted to lock down the Avengers, put us in check, and that meant we'd have someone else telling us when we could get involved and when we couldn't. That's what the Sokovia Accords were about, and I wanted them. Cap wouldn't stand for that. Not the first time a situation went south and our 'committee' told us to ignore it. So I didn't let you know why you were getting into this because I wanted to win so badly."

The confession sank in, and Pepper wanted to cry just from the look on Peter Parker's face. He looked around, anywhere but Tony, and finally asked, "All...all the other stuff in the Sokovia Accords, about registering people. Why was that in there?"

"Because the bastards who wrote it think mutants, inhumans, and enhanced _aren't_ human and should be treated like walking weapons," said Tony. He sighed again and dropped his eyes, releasing the kid's shoulders. "Damn it. I even knew that. I _knew_ their agenda. I didn't care, because at least part of that agenda was something I wanted. I thought I could get the Accords amended, get rid of the bad stuff, keep the parts that brought us under control." He shrugged. "You've seen firsthand how that turned out." Turning back before Peter could argue, he said sharply, "But that's on _me,_ kid, not you and not anybody else who got caught in the net. Now I've gotta live with it and try to fix it - and try not to make the fix worse than the underlying problem, which, I admit, I've got a really bad habit of doing."

Peter's aunt came to his side, putting an arm around the boy, and he subtly leaned on her before protesting, "You still..." Amazing, the kid was still trying to redeem his hero. "You didn't do anything bad to me in Germany, not really. You tried to keep me from getting hurt."

"Peter..." Tony dared Aunt May's wrath by stepping close to him again. "Look me in the eye and tell me and tell me I didn't blow you off and leave you to your own devices afterward." The kid swallowed hard and didn't answer. "Tell me that didn't hurt, kiddo."

Peter looked down and sniffled, and Pepper discovered several maternal bones that she hadn't known she had. Maybe it was the same thing that led Tony to put a hand on Peter's shoulder when the kid argued in a shaky voice, "Y-you were right, though. I screwed it up. You w-warned me, but the ferry..."

Tony let out a bitter laugh, and Peter winced. Tony patted him. "Yeah, you messed up at the ferry, and things blew up. So I came storming in, saved the day, chewed you out, took the suit back, and blew you off again." The kid flinched harder, and there were both of Tony's hands on his shoulders again. "C'mon, Underoos, don't try to nominate me for sainthood. That'd be a joke. If I'd been paying attention, and I should've been because _I_ chose to upgrade you to the big leagues, I'd've realized that you're Spider-Man and taking the upgrades away wouldn't change that. Instead, you ended up against Toomes with even less protection. _That's_ why I wanted to make you a full Avenger after - no, that wasn't a character test. Getting engaged to Pepper was just a fallback for both of us to save face with the press, so you don't need to worry about that."

Tony'd been doing really well up until that last line, but the kid looked even more devastated now. That was what prompted Pepper to blurt out, "N-no, c'mon, that's not true!" Peter looked at her with big, wet eyes, and _dammit_...she threw herself in front of the bullet. "Peter, Tony and I've loved each other for years, but it's been up and down, th-that's all." Any other time, Tony and Rhodey would be beside themselves at seeing her reduced to stammering like this. "I - yes, okay, I was really mad when I found out - how - how old you really are, and I - uh - moved too fast." She backed toward the elevator door. "W-we'll talk, okay?" she told Tony. "Later, when things're - er, calmed down."

Then she bolted for the elevator. Presidents of industrialized nations, asshole CEOs, raving generals, and the occasional supervillain hadn't managed to make Pepper Potts run for it. Rhodey was a step behind her. Then Tony exclaimed, "I'll walk you out!" and came racing to the elevator with them.

They went up instead of down, in painful silence, and once they were in the residential suites, Tony said, "Sorry about that. I can't stay long; the kid's a nervous wreck and won't let the doctors give him anything." He looked at Pepper, tired and resigned. "I can take it back now if you want. I'll hide it, and we'll just hold off on announcing it's off 'till later, when he's recovered and…y'know, calmer."

Rhodey backed up, getting out of the line of fire. Pepper...hesitated. Some churning mess of emotions swirled inside her chest with her fingers on the ring in her pocket. Finally, she admitted, "I...okay, I get why you gave him those upgrades. It's hard to disappoint that kid."

Tony let out an empty, bitter laugh. That was such a horrible sound, and she hated every time he did it. He turned away. "Now _you're_ giving me more credit than I deserve, Ms. Potts; that's not like you. I had no such generous motive. Peter just doesn't get it. Or won't. I used him, then made him somebody else's problem at every opportunity." He spun back toward her, looking desperate. "Pepper, I threw Happy in over his head. It wasn't his fault; he had no idea the things I did to get that kid into this in the first place. He trusted me to know what I was doing."

She _almost_ pulled the ring out then. Almost. Instead, with her voice embarrassingly shaky, she said, "I'll think about it."

And she left the ring in her pocket. Once it was clear neither of them could come up with anything to say, Rhodey spoke up cautiously, "I came to look in on the kid, but if it's a bad time - "

" - no," said Tony. "No, hell, he'd love to meet you properly. Like I should've done last year."

Rhodey frowned. "Why didn't you?"

Tony's eyes were bleak. "Because if you'd seen his face, you'd never have let him be involved."

Rhodey's low voice and the look in his eyes spoke more than Pepper's loudest shout could have. "Damn. Right. Part of this _is_ on you, Tony. Not the Accords - you and I both read the Accords wrong, and we _really_ read the drafters wrong. But this kid being in this condition, and everything that happened to him in the last year, that's _so_ on you. He's just too young to understand that - and that's the point."

"I know," Tony said, looking away. "Believe me. I know. I've had a lot of time to think about that in the last two weeks. Spider-Man wasn't a big thing on YouTube until after Germany. The kid has a right to be proud of himself; he did good work before that."

'Yeah, he did." Rhodey sighed. "So I won't waste any more time flogging you; never works anyway." Tony snorted. "We've gotta figure out a cover story now. Some way to pin down the Sentinels without endangering the kid."

" _Any_ of the kids." Tony turned back to them with a haunted expression. "I...yesterday, I met the X-Men." Rhodey stiffened. "They're not terrorists any more than the Avengers were, Rhodey. They're running rescues on the detention centers. _They're_ the ones who teamed up with Cap and found Peter in the Raft with the mutant detainees. I saw...Jesus...dozens of kids like him, some of 'em a lot younger, same condition. There're hundreds more who've been held. T'Challa took a lot of 'em abroad too. This goes beyond internment, it's like...conscription. Worse."

"How young?" Pepper breathed.

"Dunno exactly. Jean Grey said they have almost sixty, and that's _just_ the ones who got 'special attention' like Peter Parker. There were around two hundred detainees just in the Raft, but only five treated like Peter." Tony stared into the distance. "I saw...at their infirmary, I saw some who…I'd be surprised if they were over ten."

Rhodey punched the wall. Pepper winced. Breathing hard, he let Tony steady him and muttered, "I need a hack on the US government." Any other time, that alone would've been so unlike Rhodey that Tony would be calling a suit and dragging him to a body scanner. Rhodey's eyes were blazing. "There'll be records _somewhere_ of who's been taken, their ages, where they've been held, and if those detention centers have been breached. We need to do...what Rogers and Romanoff did to SHIELD. Blow the lid off."

"Agreed. And I need a good cover story for Peter," said Tony. "He won't give up Spider-Man, but Spider-Man's associated with us now whether we like it or not - I know," Tony held up a hand when Rhodey and Pepper bristled. "I know, that's on me. But I'm not making it common knowledge that Spider-Man's Peter Parker until Peter's ready, and at the same time, I want those fuckers who took him to pay for it. So I need a cover story. He was my 'intern', I figure. He worked with Spider-Man. Somehow I need to convince people that the Sentinels aren't just sadistic fuckers, they're also idiots and grabbed the wrong kid. That'll make American parents nervous."

"Let me work on that," said Pepper. "I've spent decades doing damage control and cover stories for your shenanigans. Disconnecting Spider-Man from Peter Parker in the public mind'll be a piece of cake. We'll keep the popular assumption that Spider-Man is college age. Young but legal."

"That works." Tony glanced at his watch. "I need to go check on him. You coming with?" he asked Rhodey.

"Sure."

"I'll talk to PR and Legal," said Pepper. She watched them get onto the elevator and waited until the doors were closed. "Friday, has Tony slept in his own bed in the past two days?"

" _No, Ms. Potts. He hasn't removed your access to his personal records, so I can add that he hasn't done that since Peter was kidnapped."_

"What about his workshop?"

 _"He hasn't set foot in his workshop since Peter was kidnapped._ "

She toyed with the ring in her pocket and decided to keep it there for awhile.

 _ **To Be Continued...**_

 _ **Coming Soon:**_ _Peter meets Rhodey properly and reunites with Ned properly, as Tony begins putting his cover story and plans into motion._

 **PLEASE don't forget to review!**


	11. Chapter 11

_**Author's Notes:**_ _Thank you all so much for all the reviews and discussion! Please keep it coming! It's probably obvious, but the medical information in this fic is two parts Wikipedia, one part making shit up completely._

 _ **Canon Note:**_ _Peter and Aunt May and Uncle Ben's history mentioned in this chapter is my own version of the many different canons - Peter's parents died when he was three, Aunt May gave up her job as a pharmacist to be a full-time parent until he was in middle school, but she had to return to work full-time after Ben died. Ned having an older brother who's a student at Columbia is also my own invention. Also, both nurses are borrowed from other stories - one in the MCU and another from a different fandom._

 **Chapter Eleven**

Peter was so agitated after the confrontation with Pepper Potts that May was actually glad to see Tony Stark return to the medical suite. It saved her the miffed pride of having to ask for him (and the stealth, because, of course, Peter kept telling her _not_ to "bother him").

With Stark came Colonel James Rhodes aka War Machine. Until she worked out that Peter was Spider-Man, May wouldn't have been able to recognize any Avenger out of costume (well, maybe Thor, but who could blame her?). Now she knew all of their faces. She didn't relinquish her chair closest to Peter, but didn't complain while Stark pulled a second one to the bedside.

Neither man commented on Peter's red-rimmed eyes or the way he was shaking. "Peter Parker, Rhodey," said Stark.

May blinked. "Wait, you haven't met?"

"Not really," said Rhodes. "Definitely not face to face." His smile was warm as he shook Peter's hand and took the second chair. "Glad we finally got around to that. How're you feeling?"

Peter shrugged and looked down. "I'm okay." Then he stiffened and looked more intensely at Rhodes – at his legs, for some reason. "You're..."

May had no idea what he meant, but Rhodes did. "Yep. Up and moving, getting better, thanks to her." He gestured to Dr. Cho. "Cutting edge regeneration technology, even starting to work on the spinal cord."

That knocked Peter out of his tailspin. "Regeneration?!"

May forced herself to playful-groan. "Please, don't give him ideas."

"Please _do,_ " Dr. Cho said. "I'll steal him from Tony!"

Peter brightened. "You know they used to use spiderweb for bandages. Maybe you should try mine. I cooked it up in chemistry."

Rhodes looked from Peter to Stark. "Wait, that web stuff wasn't Stark tech?"

"No," said Peter, sounding defensive. "Well, the shooter on the suit in Germany was Mr. Stark's 'upgrade,' but I invented the web fluid formula."

" _Son!_ " Rhodes leaned back. "That's amazing! I thought that was either Stark tech or you actually spun it yourself!"

At any other time, May would've been proud to bursting at seeing Peter get praise like that. Now she was itching to snap a reminder of what Spider-Man had gotten Peter into. She forced it back. Rhodes caught her eye and held out a hand to Peter again, wanting a look at his bandaged wrists. "They're healing," Peter muttered, avoiding everyone's eyes. "They'll be fine in a couple days; I heal fast."

"Still, no US agent had any business pulling this on you or anybody else, especially not kids. All hell is about to rain down on these Sentinel squads for this. But Tony's right," Rhodes said, both to Peter and May. "You didn't do anything wrong, not as Spider-Man or Peter Parker. Nobody had a right to do that to any of you."

 _Nobody had a right to give him a uniform and take him to Germany to fight other Avengers either,_ May wanted to spit. She didn't. It wouldn't do any good now and would only stress Peter even more.

Peter was the one anxious to change the subject, and demanded, "So how do you regenerate nerves? I thought that was impossible!"

"It used to be," Rhodes confirmed. Dr. Cho, Stark, and Peter were soon off on a conversation about cellular responses to energy stimulation that made May's head spin. Even Rhodes said at one point, "Don't look at me, I just smile and nod and get in the cradle when she tells me to. He's the genius on this team," he gestured with his head at Stark. "Though I'm starting to think you're gonna give him a run for his money by the time you're twenty-one."

Peter blushed adorably, but asked, "Does it...hurt?"

"Nah, not the cradle. Tony calls it the tanning booth. I just nap. After...while the signals are reestablishing, yeah, that hurts, but I'm on the good drugs."

Dr. Cho seized the opportunity. "There you go, Peter, not all painkillers turn people into opioid addicts."

Peter looked thoughtful. May decided to tug the discussion along. "I used to be a pharmacist. I take it they're not still using lycanphoban for nerve damage?"

"Gesundheit," said Rhodes.

Dr. Cho laughed. "No, that's been obsolete awhile. How long ago?"

May forced a chuckle. "Not since this one was three." She'd quit working when Peter's parents died and she and Ben had become his guardians, thinking he'd need a full-time parent after that. She'd gone back to work part-time once he hit middle school, and they'd done fine with Ben's income until he died. After that, she'd had to work full-time. _I guess that's part of the reason he managed to become Spider-Man without me finding out._ She didn't say any of that. "I don't know what the good drugs are anymore if they're not in the news."

"Unfortunately, it gets complicated for people with enhanced or non-standard anatomy like Peter or the other Avengers," said Dr. Cho. "Or mutants. Bodies and blood respond in different ways, and you've got to get creative. I had a patient the other day that nothing worked on, but at least he let me try."

Peter turned to her. "Was that Bucky Barnes?"

There was dead silence for several beats, and Peter belatedly remembered that Tony Stark was in the room. He flushed again, May held her breath, and Dr. Cho answered without looking at Stark. "Yes. But part of the enhancement of the supersoldier serum is that their pain tolerance is far higher, luckily. He did let me try some different formulas on him. I'm still working on something that'll work for when Captain America gets injured."

"I guess I, uh...didn't think the supersoldiers could get injured," Peter murmured, avoiding Stark's eyes.

"They can, sad to say, along with almost everybody on the team. There's no superhero that doesn't end up needing a painkiller or a sleep aid."

"Oh, right now, I need both," Rhodes said quickly. "Especially right now, when you're getting over an injury. Sleeping's not easy. That's when it's hardest to distract yourself."

May decided she liked James Rhodes. Peter looked at his hands and smiled. "Okay, I...guess I'll try that stuff tonight." He shot Stark an anxious look before asking Cho, "So...do you mean you had to take bullets out of him without anesthesia?"

"Oh! No, fortunately, we had Wanda Maximoff."

"Brain stuff," Stark put in. "It can come in handy." He gave Peter a half-smile. "Guess I should've mentioned I'd also seen her sedate injured people who were panicking."

"I made her cry," Peter murmured in dismay. "Was she okay?"

Rhodes turned around and shot a glare at Stark, who stammered, "I - uh - yeah, I've seen her since. She's okay. She was on the team that rescued you, and when I met up with them yesterday, they had twenty more rescuees." He frowned to himself suddenly, then turned to May. "Now that I think about it, let's talk later. I may have an idea for where you go from here?"

"What?" Peter piped up.

"Nah, don't worry about it right now, kid. You're here until you've recovered. Speaking of which, we oughtta let you get some sleep."

"Will you - " Peter caught himself.

Stark paused as Rhodes got up. "Yeah?"

"Will you be here tomorrow?" Peter finished in a small voice.

Stark betrayed _almost_ no reaction. "Yeah," he answered. "Yeah, I'll be here."

May let herself glower at him once her back was to Peter. _Can we keep Rhodes and lose you?_ At least Rhodes had gotten them back to the subject of meds, and though Peter bit his lip, he didn't pull away when Dr. Cho brought the syringes out.

"We'll start you with the smallest dose," she told him. He grabbed May's hand and looked at her, avoiding even watching as Cho injected him. "Tomorrow you'll be able to try some solid food."

Peter grinned weakly at May. "Good. I couldn't take one more day of Starkified Ensure. This stuff isn't as bad as that Pedia-whatever you used to make me drink when I was sick, but it's not exactly a milkshake."

May pinched his nose, a game she and Ben used to play with him. He squeaked on cue. "I'll bring you take-out. What'll it be? Larb?"

Dr. Cho laughed. "Not that I don't appreciate larb, but we're going to have to start a little bland. And you're stuck on the Stark nutritional supplement for a little longer even when you are eating solid food."

Peter mock-groaned, and May could already see him relaxing and getting sleepy. "When you're out of recovery, we'll go out," she promised. "Somewhere really obnoxious."

"Y'said y'd take me to Sparks Steak House when I graduated," Peter murmured with a dopey smile.

"Aw, Sparks is so uncreative," Dr. Cho protested. "A steak's a steak."

"Dun' want all that chef-thing-gastromomigal stuff. Wanna eat real food."

"Larb is about as creative as Peter can tolerate," May said, stroking his hair. The conversation got increasingly less coherent, and in ten minutes, he was out. "Thank God. I couldn't've handled another night like last night."

"Once he's had a comfortable night, I think he'll feel a lot better about this," said Dr. Cho. "If these meds work well, I'll switch them to his IV, so he doesn't have to feel another needle."

"Thanks," May said thickly, rubbing Peter's hand.

"You know...of course, you know this already, but I'll say it anyway." May looked up at Dr. Cho, whose expression was dead-earnest. "Spider-Man or no Spider-Man, he is a remarkable boy."

May sucked in a deep, shaky breath. "Yeah," she whispered. "Yeah, I've known that for a long time. I just wish I'd known sooner just...how much."

Dr. Cho patted her shoulder. "You're not the first parent to have a brilliant child get ahead of you, both in intellect and growing up. It's not a failing."

Hearing that said out loud, from this doctor who'd been so reassuring and knew so much, May thought maybe she could start to believe it.

* * *

On the second day waking up somewhere other than...there...Peter felt halfway human again. The smell of coffee and toast actually had him thinking he was at home for a few minutes. Then he felt the IV in his arm and the bandages around his wrists, and he remembered. "'s morning?"

"It sure is," May confirmed, putting her coffee cup down to ruffle his hair. "And you slept through the night. How're you feeling?"

"Better," Peter said, sitting up slowly. "A lot better," he amended it, surprised. He still felt wrung out and sore, but no longer like somebody'd sand-blasted his whole body and tied him up in sailor's knots. He was still tired and groggy, but no longer like he'd just collapse in a quivering pile of bones and Jell-O at any moment.

"So what do you want for breakfast?" asked Claire, the duty nurse. ''Oatmeal or cream of wheat or just about any other soft food. Eggs?"

"Honestly?" Peter sat up a little straighter and swung his legs off the bed. "Can I take a shower first? Y'know, a real one?"

May looked at the nurse. "I'll get one of the male nurses to sit outside," Claire said. "But if you feel up to it, no reason not to."

So Peter got an honest-to-God power shower with real shampoo and everything, and didn't even feel ready to collapse by the time he was finished. The male nurse, Rory (Stark sure employed a lot of Brits), hung out and chatted with him through the door and politely turned his back once he established Peter could manage drying off and getting dressed on his own.

Peter was tired by the time he got back to bed, but he could still sit up and eat. Eat _food_ not just drink stuff out of a can – well, he still had to drink the Stark Nutritional Supplement out of the can, and it was nasty. "Hey - May, did anyone call Ned and tell him I'm okay?"

May hesitated, and Peter's heart sank. "Ned's been here," she admitted. Peter froze, and she explained, "The first day, you were still asleep, but he, ah, wanted to see you. I - I snapped at him, Peter, I admit. I need to apologize to him, and I will."

Peter sighed. He didn't have any right to get upset with May for freaking out. He'd known the first time he'd gone _toward_ a crime instead of away from it that May would freak out, and the more he did, the more he'd known she'd freak out. The last coherent thought he remembered having in that prison was how freaked out she'd be. "He...is _he_ okay?"

"Let's call him," May suggested. "I still want you resting, but maybe he can pay a quick visit."

Ned _cried_ when he heard Peter's voice on the phone! Peter was mortified and guilty and just kept babbling at him that it was okay until Ned's mom took the phone. _"Sorry, Peter, he's just really glad to hear your voice._ "

"I - uh, I'm feeling a lot better, if he -uh - wants to come hang out for awhile."

" _At Avengers headquarters?! Okay, I'll bring him!_ "

"Oh - uh - wait - hang on a minute, Mrs. Leeds - " Peter covered the phone frantically and hissed at May, " _Ned's mom wants to bring him, what do I tell her?_ "

May got up and hurried out of the suite. Luckily, Mr. Stark was close by, because Peter heard his voice. After a minute, he leaned into the suite and gave Peter a thumbs-up. "Tell her she can bring her kid; we'll have a cover story."

"Okay. Sorry, Mrs. Leeds, that's fine. See you soon." He hung up and said nervously, "The thing is, Ned's...not always great at keeping secrets, but his mom's a _gossip_ , Mr. Stark. Everything that happens, she'll tell the neighbors about _and_ post on the Internet."

"Excellent," said Mr. Stark, to Peter's complete confusion. "She's going to spread some rumors for us without even realizing it, before we're ready to make a formal statement."

"So...what is the cover story?"

"You were a Stark Industries intern, brilliant enough to get access to some classified work on behalf of Spider-Man," said Mr. Stark. "In time, you met Spider-Man, who's a college student and a legal adult." May snorted. Mr. Stark ignored her and went on, "But like all teenagers, you couldn't always keep your mouth shut. You let slip a few details you shouldn't have, your buddies passed them along, and you maybe took a project home that wasn't supposed to leave the building - oh, relax, kid, we've all done stuff like that," he said, seeing the look on Peter's face. "Including yours truly, once upon a time, longer ago than I care to admit. The point is, you weren't breaking the law, and a couple of morons in the Sentinel program decided _you_ were Spider-Man and shoved you, a nice Queens high schooler with perfect grades and a single mom, into a detention center and tortured the hell out of you for ten days."

Peter's head was spinning. "I...I...dunno if I can remember all that," he mumbled.

"Don't worry about it. Let Pepper and me do the talking. We grown-ups will rant about the injustice while you and your BFF catch up."

"But Ned needs to know the cover story too," May pointed out. "Ned knows Peter's Spider-Man."

"We'll prep him. If he's smart enough to hack my suit tech, he's smart enough to learn a few sound bites."

* * *

When Ned got there, came running into the suite ahead of his mom and hugged Peter. "God, it's good to see you, man!" Startled, Peter hugged him back.

Peter had to endure a hug from Mrs. Leeds as well. "Ned's father wanted to come too, but I was afraid we'd overwhelm you. How're you feeling, darling?"

"Better," Peter said honestly, but had trouble looking her in the eyes.

May coaxed her out of the room. "Let's let the boys commiserate for a few minutes. They've both had a rough time."

Ned nearly broke down crying again when they left, and that freaked Peter out all over again. "I'm sorry, man, I'm so sorry! It's all my fault - "

" - hey, no, come on!" Peter protested. "Look... May told me she freaked out at you; she didn't mean it. She's freaked out at everybody in the building who stands still long enough. It's not your fault. Mr. Stark and...some of his people were investigating those guys who took me out of school. They're real federal agents, and I wasn't the only person they grabbed. MJ was right about the Sokovia Accords, all of it. They did a blood test at the police station, and it came up abnormal, so they locked me up."

" _Shit._ " Ned buried his face in his hands. "But how'd they know to grab you if it wasn't for me talking?"

"Seriously," said Peter. "There're all kinds of rumors about who Spider-Man really is and who's related to who and where the Avenger outlaws are. _Toomes_ knew I was Spider-Man; a prison informant's more likely to get their attention than some guy at a high school party saying, 'hey, my friend knows Spidey!'" Peter waited until Ned looked at him again. "Unless you said it other times that I don't know about."

He didn't want to think Ned would do that, and to his relief, Ned shook his head vigorously. "Uh-uh, even then, I knew it was stupid and I mighta put you in danger. I never talked about it to anyone again except you and, well, I went to Stark Tower after you got taken and told the receptionist I knew, so she'd call Mr. Stark."

Peter waved him off. "Definitely no harm, no foul. Listen, Mr. Stark's giving a cover story to your mom that I'm not Spider-Man, and those agents just fucked it up and got an innocent guy tortured."

At first, Ned was all breathless, 'Okay, yeah, that's good thinking..." then he frowned. "Peter...dude, seriously, you _were_ just an innocent guy, Spider-Man or not! Shit, MJ's right, they can't just lock up and torture people!"

"Yeah, that's what I meant. Just that we're gonna tell people Spider-Man's a college student and I'm just an intern." It came out a little more petulant than Peter intended.

Ned studied him. "But...that's good, right? That way Iron Man gets the bad guys without having to blow your cover."

Peter shrugged. "Yeah. I guess. I...dunno, it's stupid."

"So say it anyway, we both say stupid stuff."

Peter had to smile, even if it was a little weak. "Yeah, I...don't want people to know I'm Spider-Man. That'd put a lot of people in danger. Aunt May, you, everyone at school. I just...it kinda bugs me, the thought of people being absolutely certain that I'm _not_ Spider-Man."

Ned had to contemplate that for a few moments, then slowly nodded. "Yeah...I think I get that. I do. It pisses me off when people say maybe you're Spider-Man but it's a foregone conclusion to 'em that I'm not." Peter couldn't think of what to say to that, so he just nodded.

When Mrs. Leeds came back in with May and Mr. Stark, she was sputtering with barely-contained outrage and hugged Peter _again._ God, that was embarrassing. May just grinned, while Ned looked sympathetic. Peter was sorry to see Ned leaving so soon.

"You up to longer company?" Mr. Stark asked. Peter nodded eagerly, and Mr. Stark turned to Mrs. Leeds. "Why don't you let me have a driver bring Ned home later? Peter could use some company his own age by now, I'm sure."

"Are you sure? You won't get too tired?" Mrs. Leeds demanded.

"If he gets tired, I'll bail," Ned promised. "We'll watch a movie or something, nothing tiring. Next time I'll plan ahead and bring Legos."

It was a deal, and that got Mrs. Leeds out of the suite so Mr. Stark and Ms. Potts and May could coach Ned on the cover story. He paid rapt attention to every word and asked questions Peter would never have even thought about. All to convince the world that Peter Parker _wasn't_ Spider-Man.

Well, more than once, Ned shot Peter sympathetic looks.

Once they were all satisfied that Ned had the story down, and Mrs. Leeds was probably already blowing up the cell towers in Queens, they left Peter and Ned alone. "So Iron Man rescued you?"

Peter opened his mouth to tell the story, then thought better of it and just said, "Yeah. I don't remember much of it. I was pretty messed up by then."

"They didn't let you _sleep_? Like, at all?" Ned demanded. "How long can someone live without sleeping?"

Peter shrugged. "Dunno, but I passed out a lot after awhile. It all kind of ran together."

Ned cringed. "Sorry, man. That's..."

"...torture?" Peter asked dryly. They both chuckled weakly. Flailing around for a safe topic, Peter called, "Friday, did The Last Jedi come out on video while I was gone?"

" _Yes, it did, Peter. Would you like me to play it on the big screen?_ "

Peter raised his eyebrows at Ned, who looked around in confusion. "Yeah, but...what big screen?"

The generic landscape on the wall abruptly turned black. " _This big screen,_ " said Friday, sounding amused. " _If you need to pause or backtrack or skip ahead, it responds to verbal commands._ "

Peter had gotten used to the sound of Friday teasing him, but Ned was baffled. "That's _awesome..._ but who's Friday?"

Peter grinned and waved at the air. "Ned Leeds, this is Friday. Friday, this is Ned Leeds."

" _Nice to meet you, Ned. I'm Tony Stark's primary AI. I operate the compound and Mr. Stark's suits when he's in combat. I also interface with the AI in Peter's suits when he's patrolling._ "

Ned was moving his mouth, but no sound was coming out. Judging by the wild eyes and delighted grin, Peter was _pretty_ sure he was impressed, not preparing to run screaming out the doors. "Friday's cool. So you watched all the special features without me, didn't you?"

Well, that dropped the mood. Ned's face fell. "You kidding, dude? You'd been missing six days when I got the email that the DVD had dropped, and I had a freaking meltdown. My big brother came back from Columbia to try and cheer me up, brought the Blu-Ray, and I wouldn't even look at it."

Peter winced. "Sorry, man."

Ned forced a smile. "I'm just glad you're back. So? Let's do this."

Peter didn't even make it to the special features. He fell asleep at some point during Luke and Rey's second training session. When he woke up, the video had stopped, and Ned was nowhere in sight. May was watching TV with headphones. She grinned and brought him a note:

 _You zonked out during Luke's exposition! Man, you are so not ready to go back to school. Don't watch the rest without me. See you later!_

\- _Ned._

 ** _To Be Continued..._**

 ** _Coming Soon:_** _Peter is still struggling with unanswered questions from his time in the Raft, but the answers lie with the one person he knows is least likely to visit - Bucky Barnes. But where Peter's afraid to ask after Bucky, May isn't._

 **PLEASE don't forget to review!**


	12. Chapter 12

_**Author's Notes:**_ _Many thanks to everyone for all the wonderful reviews and discussion! Please keep it coming! This is another chapter where just about everybody has a meltdown, but our heroes are still trying to come to terms with Peter's treatment by the Sentinel Program and figure out the right direction for their anger and pain. Once again, the unreliable narrator tag applies to this chapter for everybody's POV._

 **Chapter Twelve**

Peter grinned as he read Ned's note. May took her headphones off and turned off the TV. "He was very considerate. He stopped the playback as soon as he realized you'd crashed and got Friday to back it up to where it lost you."

"I have lost so many nerd points for that," Peter grumbled.

May rolled her eyes. "I think Ned will give you a pass. Happy Hogan took him home three hours ago. Hungry?"

"Maybe, for something other than oatmeal."

"Let me see, your lunch menu is...soup, soup, or soup." Peter groaned, and she handed over a tablet. "It's a pretty nice soup menu, though."

Actually, she was right. Mr. Stark came by while Peter was on his second bowl of baked potato soup. "Back to eating me out of house and home?"

"I'm planning on hibernating next," Peter replied. May laughed. It was good to hear her laugh. "Oh...Mr. Stark, I told Ned you rescued me, and...didn't give him any other details. Is that okay?"

"What? Yeah, sure. I mean..." Stark considered it, and his expression got more guarded. Peter managed not to cringe. "Yeah, now's not the time to let word get out about the Avengers and the X-Men. They'll get their due, though, don't worry."

"Yeah, I..." Why, why, _why_ was Peter thinking of bringing up what he was thinking of bringing up? "Y'know, I don't want it to be just about me. There…there were…a lot of other kids in there too." That was a pivot, and Stark nodded readily...but waited. Shit, he knew where Peter was trying to get up the courage to go. May was getting anxious, so Peter swallowed hard. "I...don't remember a lot..." The anxiety of trying to broach this subject was too much, and he trailed off.

"Yeah?" Mr. Stark prompted gently.

Peter forced himself to look at Mr. Stark. He owed Mr. Stark that much to look him in the face while speaking of this. "I remember the Win - I mean, Bucky Barnes." Mr. Stark's expression went blank. Peter gulped but went on, "I remember he recognized me. He knew I was Spider-Man, and when I couldn't walk, he carried me. Then he got shot protecting me."

"I know," said Mr. Stark shortly, though Peter _hoped_ he wasn't mad. "He's fine. Dr. Cho treated him, and he's back with the others."

"They're all okay?" asked May. "Wanda Maximoff too?" Mr. Stark nodded. "I've been wondering, how old is she?"

Peter winced, but Mr. Stark answered, "She's twenty - well, twenty-one now, I guess."

"Mm. Falcon said Hydra reeled her in when she was fifteen. That's an impressionable age." Peter shot May a desperate look, but her eyes were locked on Mr. Stark.

"I know." Mr. Stark didn't meet her gaze; he was staring at some point at the foot of Peter's bed. "The minute she found out what Ultron was really planning, she and her brother turned on him. She's a brave kid."

"So _she's_ still a kid?"

" _Quit it,_ May!" Peter burst out. She looked unrepentant, but Tony put a hand towards Peter.

"Relax, they're fair questions." Mr. Stark straightened and met May's hot gaze. "She's a legal adult, but, yeah, she's young. She had a lot of trauma even before Hydra reeled her in, and yeah, sometimes I forgot that. But she's also powerful and can be really damn dangerous when the gloves come off, and I'd have been even shittier than I was in Germany _not_ to warn Peter of what he might come up against."

May folded her arms. "Or you were manipulating Peter _and_ her to get what you wanted."

Peter squirmed. Mr. Stark sighed. "This isn't gonna change what happened - " Then he stiffened and stared into the distance, as if he remembered something.

May either didn't notice or didn't care, and she forged on where Peter no longer had the nerve. "What'll happen to them? The Avengers who didn't want to be under the Sokovia Accords? They're fugitives, 'war criminals,' and they were the ones who found Peter. Are you going to keep on hunting them?"

"No. I know where they are," Mr. Stark said, still not looking at May or Peter. "I'm not enforcing the Accords anymore, and doing everything I can to bring them and the Sentinel Program down."

Peter spoke up before he could stop himself. "What about Bucky Barnes?" Mr. Stark stiffened again, and Peter cringed. "Is that... including him too?" Mr. Stark didn't answer. Peter swallowed hard. "'m sorry."

"It's okay," Mr. Stark said very quietly, but he still looked away.

"It's just...in the prison..." Now Mr. Stark turned sharply towards Peter, and May caught her breath.

"What?" Mr. Stark asked, stepping closer. "Peter, what? C'mon, talk to us. What happened in the prison?"

Peter couldn't make the words come out. He cringed away from Mr. Stark, who backed off, but May came to sit on the bed and wrap her arms around him. _I would've done anything they asked, anything, just to make them stop...if they'd told me to do anything, but they didn't, I begged, what do you want? I begged and I screamed and cried and it only took 'em a few days to break me and I'm sorry I was so weak, I just couldn't..._

May's voice, for once, wasn't full of recriminations when she told Mr. Stark, "Maybe you should go."

"Yeah, I'll - "

" - wait!" Peter blurted. He had to tell, had to explain. _Have to warn Mr. Stark I'm not strong enough..._ He made himself look up, and Mr. Stark's breath caught, his expression looking like...he saw something devastating. He rallied himself, sat on the foot of Peter's bed, and waited.

Peter forced himself to say, "I...when - all of it - they - I asked 'em what they wanted - " It was taking all the energy he had not to just sob the words out. "They - didn't say. I'd've - Mis'r Stark - I'd've done it - whatever they wanted - " May's arms around him grew painfully tight. He could feel her pressing her face into his hair. "Anything," he choked out. "Just - 'm sorry - just wanted 'em to stop!" It was no good; he was crying again. _Again,_ in front of Mr. Stark. "They only - jus' a few days, 'n I broke, gave up - begged 'em - I'd'a done anything to make 'em stop!"

He gave up trying to look at Mr. Stark and jammed his knuckles against his mouth, trying to make himself quit sounding like this. He was shaking, and he could feel May crying - he'd made her cry again. _Again_.

Mr. Stark's hand caught his, tugging Peter's hands gently down. His eyes were wet. Peter couldn't hold back another sob at the sight. "Listen to me," Mr. Stark said, barely above a whisper. "You listen to me, Peter Parker. You've...got... _nothing..._ to be ashamed of."

But if that was true, then why...Peter whispered, "But they had Bucky Barnes for years!" Mr. Stark rocked backward, and Peter was scared of the look on his face: betrayal. "'m sorry!" he choked out.

Mr. Stark looked away, at the floor, at the bedclothes, at the wall, like he was searching for something. He fumbled back towards Peter and awkwardly patted his arm. "It's okay, kid. It's okay, I...it's okay. You don't have to be scared to talk to me. Not...even about that."

Then why did Peter feel like he'd just stabbed Mr. Stark through the heart?

But Peter forced himself to go on, because Bucky Barnes had saved his life even though Peter'd been his enemy, and now Peter couldn't quit thinking about how easily the guys at the prison had broken him. "I...dunno what they did to him," he croaked. "Just...it only took a few days for me. I tried, I swear I tried."

"I believe you," Mr. Stark whispered, patting his arm but still not looking at him. Would Tony Stark ever be able to look at Peter again?

He did, but his eyes were still wet, and Peter hated himself for saying all this. He owed Mr. Stark everything...but he also owed Bucky Barnes his life. No matter what Peter did, he'd be hurting one of them, and he _couldn't!_

"Peter. Hey." Mr. Stark shifted closer. Now his hand was on Peter's shoulder. "I'm not mad. They put you through hell in there, and nothing you said or did is your fault. Hear me?" Peter nodded. "Okay, you hear, but do you _believe_ me?"

Peter hesitated, and Mr. Stark sighed. "How c'n it not be my fault if..." He made himself shut up. Stark flinched and shut his eyes. "Miss'r Stark..." Damn it, Peter was going to start crying _again_. "I think I knew." He felt May start to shake again. "When they wouldn't say - what they wanted - just...kept blasting me...I realized...i'was to make me...not _me_ anymore."

Mr. Stark started shaking too. Or maybe it was just because Peter was shaking so hard, it seemed like the whole room was shaking. "They're not getting you back," Mr. Stark breathed. "I swear it. If I have to take you out of the country and give you a new identity, I'll do it."

"What about the other kids?" Peter whispered. "The mutant kids. What happens to them?"

"I'm working on it. The X-Men and Cap's team are still raiding the detention centers. In the next day or so, Rhodey, Vision, and I are withdrawing from the Sokovia Accords, big and public and loud. We're gonna blow the lid off the Sentinel Program, scare the hell out of the public, and get a lot of civil rights lawyers a lot of extra work to do." Mr. Stark patted Peter's shoulder and stood up. "I saw them, Cap's team, when I went to the X-Men's school to get medications for you. Everyone's okay, including - _him._ Barnes." He said it very quickly, like the name burnt his tongue. "You relax. Get some rest. Let me deal with the lobbying _and_ the 'lawful authorities.' 'kay?" He headed for the door. "I'll be back tomorrow. Take it easy."

Peter felt completely drained when he'd gone. May sighed and rubbed his shoulders, sitting back as he curled up on the bed. "You know I'm not Tony Stark's biggest fan, Peter, but I don't think he's lying."

"I know he isn't." Peter sighed. "I just feel shitty. Bucky Barnes - I mean, the Winter Soldier - he killed Mr. Stark's parents. That's not...something you just get over."

"I know. He told me. But Vision told me what Bucky Barnes did for you, and I'll be grateful to that man for the rest of my life." Peter smiled drowsily.

"I couldn'...understand why he'd help me...let alone..." Tired as he was, he held back. He didn't want May to freak out.

But she ran her fingers through his hair and whispered, "I know he was shot protecting you. I hope I get to meet him someday. I don't care what the Winter Soldier might've done - I'll kiss Bucky Barnes."

Peter couldn't hold back a hysterical giggle at the thought. "Wish I would...meet him. Now I wanna talk to him."

"Talk to Bucky Barnes? Why?"

"He _was_ the Winter Soldier, but now he's not. Wanna know how...in case they ever get me again."

There was a long silence. He was half asleep by the time he heard May whisper, "Oh, baby."

* * *

May found Stark in a makeshift office just down the hall. So he'd moved himself down here to stay near Peter. If she didn't hate him so damn much, she might have been pleased, to see that he cared. She walked in without knocking. Stark dropped the hologram-thing he was fiddling with. "What's wrong?"

"Apart from everything we already know about? Nothing. Peter's asleep." She leaned against the wall and folded her arms. "He's afraid to ask you this, but I'm not. He wants to talk to Bucky Barnes."

It was malicious as hell, and she knew it, to relish the way Stark flinched at hearing that name. _Now it's your turn, you manipulative bastard. I think you actually care for Peter. Good. Now learn what it feels like to see some bigshot stranger come in and capture his attention and his loyalty, hear him defend someone who did so much damage to your family. Maybe then you'll know how I feel._

Stark stared out the window. "Why?" he asked softly.

She didn't hold back. "He thinks whoever was holding him wanted to break him, turn him into their own agent like the Winter Soldier. He knows Bucky Barnes came back from fifty years of that, and wants to know how. He's scared, Stark. He's scared of how he reacted in that hellhole. He thinks Bucky Barnes can help him prepare."

Stark trembled. "I've been a prisoner too." His voice was barely audible.

"And you escaped. You were a billionaire genius weapons maker who had something the terrorists wanted." May was unmoved by his distress and pressed on mercilessly, ignoring her conscience's warning that Peter would be horrified if he ever heard her talking to Stark this way. "Not everyone's lucky enough to be given the freedom to build anything when they're being held prisoner, or the skill set and the leverage. Not everyone's lucky enough to have the entire U.S. military searching for them. Poor Bucky Barnes. He was given up for dead. The Russians could do whatever they wanted to him. Maybe Peter sees a few more things in common with him than with you."

Stark shoved some papers off the desk, but didn't explode at May as she half-expected (and might have been trying to provoke). Instead, he dropped his head into his hands and didn't say anything.

She might have kept on flaying the man if someone hadn't walked through the wall. May leaped backward with a shriek and even Stark jumped. " _Dammit,_ Vision, don't do that, especially not around civilians and guys with bad hearts!"

"My apologies Tony, Mrs. Parker, it slipped my mind." He waited while May steadied herself and checked to make sure Peter hadn't heard her. "I was speaking to Dr. Cho and...overheard some of your conversations."

 _Oh, shit._

Vision went on, "Dr. Cho thought we should engage the services of a mental health counselor, both for young Peter and his...family." He fixed May with an all-too-knowing look, and suddenly, she wanted to slide to the floor and cry - again.

Stark rubbed his eyes. "Does she have someone in mind who's trustworthy and...has a clue about these kinds of things?"

"You have several on retainer, Tony. That includes Dr. Elizabeth Olivet, who Dr. Cho recommends for Peter and Mrs. Parker, both individually and perhaps together as a family. I did some independent research, and noted that Professor Charles Xavier also has a doctorate in psychology with specializations in trauma recovery. Although he's some distance away, he might also have recommendations."

Stark started to laugh. It was a weird, not at all humorous sound. "Well, I've gotta give Cap a call anyway, and arrange a meeting between Peter and Cap's murder zombie BFF." He shot May a challenging look and went on, "I might as well ask to talk to Professor X again." He slipped past her and headed for the elevator.

May was left with Vision in a _very_ uncomfortable silence. She finally muttered, "I know, Peter wouldn't approve of my hating his hero."

"The approval of a sixteen-year-old may not be a goal in and of itself, but I'd be remiss if I didn't point out that aggression towards Mr. Stark is not conducive to Peter's recovery."

"What do you know about it?" she hissed.

"I can access the entire Internet with my mind, including medical and psychological journals, so the truth is, I know a great deal," Vision answered. May couldn't even be sure if that was sarcastic or not. "I know very little about Peter except for what I've accessed electronically, and, of course, my own observations. His defense of Mr. Stark is, perhaps, a little misguided, but understandable, and not easily dissuaded. His fear of your anger is also understandable, and seeing you in outright conflict with Mr. Stark causes him nothing but distress."

May slammed the back of her head against the wall and covered her mouth to stifle a sob. She wanted to find a good soundproof room somewhere and scream at the top of her lungs. Or maybe she could get up onto the roof.

Maybe the purple butler could read minds too. "If you wish to be alone for a little while, I'll look after Peter until you return."

To hell with trying to keep it together. "Does this superhero compound have a soundproof room somewhere?"

"As it happens, it does." Vision gestured to the elevator. "First basement level. Friday will direct you."

Dazed, May did so, and found herself in a room with honest-to-God padded walls. "What the hell is this place?"

" _It may surprise you, Mrs. Parker, but Avengers find themselves in need of privacy sometimes too_ ," said Friday. " _You won't be disturbed. There are no cameras in this room, no sound escapes, and all I would report is any change in your vitals._ "

So May collapsed on the pillowed floor and screamed out sobs until she ran out of breath. Then she sprawled there and cried, deep and hard, for Peter, for Ben, for Ned, for herself, for those poor, nameless kids who'd been in that prison, for that artist at the Utopia Festival, for Bucky Barnes, for Wanda Maximoff and the rest of the fugitive Avengers.

She even cried for that strange, brilliant superhero inside Iron Man, who she halfway wanted to kill with her bare hands for taking Peter away from her...but who a part of her still couldn't help feeling sorry for.

* * *

Tony knew there was no way in hell he'd be able to get Barnes or Wanda to set foot in the compound willingly. Well, maybe if he wheedled on behalf of Peter, but then Rogers would undoubtedly flip his shit, and that was a mess Tony did not need anywhere near the kid.

And God damn it, Tony did _not_ want to ask for Barnes.

So he took the easy way out and called Charles Xavier. "Look, I don't want to be asking more favors, but...it's about Peter."

" _That's all right, Tony. How can I help?_ "

"He wants to see the team that rescued him, incl..." _Fuck._ He swallowed hard. "Including Barnes. They're not gonna want to come to the compound."

" _Then the obvious solution is to bring Peter here, when he's well enough."_

How the hell was this guy not dragging it out at least a little? Tony would've had absolutely no shame if his and Cap's positions were reversed. "What about his aunt? She's not gonna let me take Peter anywhere alone, not after this."

" _I see no reason they can't both visit. I rather doubt they'll be eager to inform on us to the Sentinel Program after Peter's experience._ "

But why the hell would Xavier be so generous towards Tony fucking Stark after what he'd helped bring down on those mutant kids? Damn if Tony's throat wasn't tightening up. "I don't - know - how soon."

" _That's all right."_ Why was Xavier so gentle? " _Let me know when you'd like to visit, and I'll ask both teams to be here. We're reaching what we hope is the end of the major rescue operations, so for the next few days, we may actually have time to rest and take stock."_

"Thanks. I owe you..." _One? Ten? Is anyone keeping score? Hell, I would be. So why aren't you?_

With the call ended, silence crashed down, and Tony stood numbly in his suite, staring out the windows. The elevator doors opened, and he turned around to see Pepper coming in. _God, not now._ He turned away. _Here to give me the ring back now?_

She came up some quietly behind him that he _knew_ why she'd come, and it was killing him. _No, don't. Go away, I don't deserve it._ But he couldn't get the breath to say it.

When her hands touched his shoulders, Tony broke. A _noise_ burst out of him, some tangled combination of a laugh, a sob, and curse, but he turned around and got bodily yanked into her arms. The noises kept coming, and his eyes were hot and wet and he couldn't lift his face from her shoulder. He was going to ruin her jacket.

"'m sorry...'m sorry..."

"I know," Pepper whispered into his hair. "I know."

 _ **To Be Continued...**_

 _ **Coming Soon:**_ _As Peter recovers, May comes to terms with his powers and his identity as Spider-Man, and Tony takes May and Peter to Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters for a reunion with the X-Men - and Bucky Barnes!_

 **PLEASE don't forget to review!**


	13. Chapter 13

_**Author's Notes:**_ _Many thanks to everyone for the incredible feedback! Please keep it coming! We're jumping ahead about five days now, so it's been roughly a week since Peter was rescued from the Raft._

 **Chapter Thirteen**

"You are incredible," Dr. Cho told Peter on his fifth day in the compound. She'd taken the bandages off and found his skin only a little pink and scarred where the metal had been welded and glued to his arms and hands. "I'm glad we took pictures or we'd never be able to prove this actually happened."

Once Peter no longer felt like a short walk would leave him exhausted, Mr. Stark moved Peter and May to an actual non-medical suite – a two-bedroom guest suite where the bathroom was bigger than Peter's bedroom!

May had her own room now, so Peter sneaked down the hall to the guests' gym once to try to exercise. He ran up the walls and swung through the rope line a few times before the guilt was too much, then he went back to his room.

Dr. Cho had made the medication into some pills that'd help him sleep. Those were easier to deal with than needles, but he still didn't want to use them every night. And even when he did use the pills, he still had nightmares. Or night terrors, or whatever you called it that left him wide awake and shivering, struggling to keep his breathing under control, certain he could hear boots on the metal floor and feel rough hands about to come out of the darkness and pry his eyelids open and flip the switch to start blasting noise and making the lights flash, jabbing needles into his arms.

Dr. Cho had given May a card for some therapists she said were trustworthy. Peter'd turned beet red and couldn't bring himself to contribute to that conversation at all. If Mr. Stark had vetted them, Peter figured that they wouldn't (well, probably wouldn't) sell his story to TMZ or Buzzfeed, but the idea of telling a stranger half of what'd been in his head since the prison and before made him feel nauseated.

Pepper Potts came to visit that fifth day. She was wearing her engagement ring. Peter got humiliatingly emotional at the sight of it, and everyone except May briefly ran out of the room until he got a grip on himself.

After, Peter and May went down to the huge Avengers' training room where Mr. Stark was hanging out with Ms. Potts, Colonel Rhodes, and Vision, and Peter mumbled apologies to Ms. Potts. "Don't worry about it," she said, her arm around Mr. Stark's waist. "You look a thousand times better."

"I feel good as new," Peter lied.

"Good enough to show me your powers?" Ms. Potts challenged.

"Uh..." Peter looked nervously from Mr. Stark to May, wondering which one he should be more worried about.

Mr. Stark chuckled. "Vision flies. You okay with it if he spots the kid?" he asked May.

May heaved a melodramatic sigh. "All right, take ten more years off my life."

So Vision floated a few feet off the floor while Peter climbed straight up the wall. He was...really tentative about it at first. Half because he'd never done anything with an audience where he wasn't wearing the suit, and the other half...he found himself wondering if something those guards had done might've killed all his powers.

That other half was stupid, and he knew it. His senses were exactly the same, and his hands and feet could still stick to surfaces.

About fifteen feet up the wall, May started muttering "Oh my God, oh my God," but _mostly_ joking, as Ms. Potts said, "Breathe, May, _breathe..._ " and Peter grinned and climbed a little faster. By the time he got to the ceiling, he wasn't nervous anymore. He skittered across it to a squeal from May and a delighted whoop from Ms. Potts.

"I think my presence here is superfluous," said Vision.

"You can catch _me_ when I pass out," replied May.

Peter back-flipped off the opposite wall and landed triumphantly in front of her. Everyone except May applauded, but May had her hands over her mouth and looked more amazed than freaked out, so that was okay. "You really are Spider-Man," she whispered.

"Yeah." Somehow the whole thing went from party tricks to something…harder, and Peter felt bad. Colonel Rhodes cleared his throat at the others, and they slipped out, leaving Peter and May alone in the Avengers' huge training gym. Seeing May trying hard not to cry again, he hugged her. "I'm sorry," he whispered. He knew he'd said it before, but he'd been only half-awake and she'd been too freaked out to yell at him, so those didn't really count. "I'm sorry I lied to you."

May loosened her grip. "Peter...you know…okay, I'd be lying if I said I wasn't hurt – and disappointed."

Ouch. _Suck it up, Peter, you know you deserve it._

"I thought you trusted me."

"I did!" he blurted. "I do! Seriously, it was never because I didn't trust you, I was just afraid…afraid you wouldn't let me keep doing it," he finished in a pathetically small voice.

May's breathing hitched a few more times before she held him back at arms' length and looked him in the eyes, mustering herself. Peter braced himself in turn. "So if I told you stop now?" Her voice shook. "Would you?"

He'd imagined this conversation before. How May would freak out. How Peter would have to stand up to her. He'd found articles online, about how to defend his choices against a disapproving parent…for things like a college major or who to date or leaving the family religion. _"Firm, gentle repetition, affirmations of love,_ " all the self-help gurus advised.

Peter swallowed hard, but he knew his voice wouldn't stay steady. So he made himself meet her eyes…and shook his head. _No. No, I wouldn't stop._ "I'm Spider-Man." He had to whisper it. "Y'can't take that away from me, May. Nobody can – not even Mr. Stark. 's who I am."

A few more silent sobs shook her, but she didn't break eye contact, and man, Peter _hated_ himself for putting her through this. A part of him even wondered if May would hate him for it. That part of him was stupid, and he knew it.

He got confirmation when she lifted a hand to his cheek. He couldn't help leaning into it. She whispered, "I know." He couldn't help the way his breath caught then, and his own body shuddered and there were tears, and _shit,_ he was going to lose it completely, but she kept rubbing his cheek. "No matter what, I love you, Peter Benjamin Parker. No matter how much you stress me out, how many messes you make, how many choices I don't like, that will never, _never_ change, do you understand me?"

He sobbed aloud and nodded. "L-love you, May." She pulled him back into a hug that would've been bone-crushing before he had his powers. "I'll b-be careful, I swear. More careful."

"You'll finish school?" she asked, the pitch of her voice rising.

Peter nodded into her neck. "Yeah. Not gonna be a drop-out, I promise." _I'd miss Ned, MJ, everything I remembered when I thought I was gonna die when that plane crashed or when I was in that prison. Decathlon. Chem. Physics. Spanish. Just…normal stuff. Can I still have normal stuff? Will the government let someone like me have normal stuff?_

He'd kept so much from May, so he told her this part. "When…things got bad, last year at Homecoming, I realized I didn't want to be an Avenger yet." That startled May enough for her to lean back and look at him. He smiled ruefully. "Y'know it was Liz Toomes' dad."

May stiffened. "Good God, I'd forgotten that."

"I didn't want anyone to die, not even the bad guys. I've seen…sometimes people die in fights with the Avengers. And not just the bad guys – passers-by who couldn't get out of the way in time. It's why they passed those Sokovia laws." Peter sighed. "I kinda realized…if I went all the way into that, I couldn't still be a high school student. Hang out with Ned, do decathlon, be…normal. So even though Mr. Stark offered after Homecoming, I said no. I just wanted to be friendly neighborhood Spider-Man a little longer."

May smiled and leaned forward until their foreheads touched. "I guess I can live with that. You're not getting out of chores, though." Peter let out the longest, whiniest groan he could, and they both started laughing. "We'll have to ask Stark how his cover story for you is coming."

"And ask Mr. Morita if I'm expelled," Peter added.

"Oh no, he's not expelling you. I've talked to him on the phone; he was as panicked as I was after they took you. You might have to do some make-up work this summer, but he won't expel you for being kidnapped." May gazed back at the huge gym as they headed out the doors. "I can't believe I'm saying this, but I think I want you to at least train with the Avengers." Peter stopped in his tracks, as surprised to hear her say that as she was. "No more of this solitary crime-fighter stuff – at least, not without some real training to back it up. They need to be teaching you how to keep _yourself_ safe."

Peter thought he could live with that too.

* * *

The next day, Mr. Stark asked, "Care to take a little ride?"

"Where to?" Peter asked.

"Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters. It's in Westchester," said Mr. Stark.

May perked up. "A school?"

"Yeah, but in the interest of full disclosure, it's also considered a potential terrorist base by the CIA and Department of Homeland Security, _because…_ " Stark flipped a holographic map into the air, "it's also the suspected headquarters of the X-Men."

Peter and May looked at each other. "So…why haven't the Sentinels gone after it?" Peter asked.

"Or the Avengers," added May, to Peter's embarrassment. "Didn't you say you were hunting the X-Men?"

Mr. Stark looked only a little chagrinned. "I was, but some lines I don't cross, and attacking a school where there're undeniably dozens of minor children on the premises is one of 'em. Even the deployment committee couldn't agree on sending us there. The school's genuine, and Xavier has some influential allies. The Sentinels didn't have the manpower to mount an assault full-on, thank God. Now they definitely won't, since Stark Industries just terminated all contracts with law enforcement, and will no longer be furnishing equipment or training materials." He leaned against the wall and told Peter, "What nobody except us in this room knows is that the school's also the temporary home of a certain team of rogue Avengers."

Peter's heart lurched. "You mean…"

"Yeah. Cap and his gang teamed up with them for rescues of detainees, and that's how they found you. I told them you wanted to see them. They'll be there." Mr. Stark looked down. "All of them."

Peter realized what he meant. "Uh…okay."

He had no idea what he was expecting on the drive to Westchester County. Maybe a fortress, or some underground bunker below an abandoned warehouse. A compound like the Avengers' headquarters.

Instead, Mr. Stark himself drove Peter and May to…a prep school, just like every other upstate prep school Peter'd ever seen, behind fancy iron gates. Red brick buildings, tree-covered hills, the kind of place May and Ben had dreamed of trying to get Peter into, but couldn't scrape together the money even with scholarships.

He could see why even the nastiest government agents might hesitate to send SWAT teams or point missiles at the place even if it was headquarters of suspected terrorists. The grounds were _full_ of kids. Granted, it was a nice spring day, and maybe it was recess or something, but there were way more kids here than Peter would've expected.

When they pulled up in the circular driveway in front of the main building – it looked more like a mansion – Peter's heart jumped as he recognized one of the groups of adults standing on the wide stairs in front of the big doors. May squeezed his hand. It was the rest of the Avengers…all except Bucky Barnes. Peter sighed to himself.

The second group, to Peter's surprise, he also recognized. At the front were the guy in red sunglasses and the woman with white hair from the Utopia Art Festival…and next to them was Madison Jeffries. Peter couldn't stop staring at them as he got out of the car.

Sunglasses Guy grinned at the way Peter and May gaped. "I knew you looked familiar." He trotted down the steps and either didn't notice or just pretended not to notice the way May tightened her grip on Peter's arm. "I'm Scott Summers, deputy headmaster."

"Cyclops?" Peter recalled without meaning to say it aloud.

"Yeah, well, that too. Mrs. Parker?" He held out a hand, and after a long hesitation, May shook it. "I remember you from the art festival."

Madison stepped forward. "In case you hadn't already guessed it, I'm a mutant too. These guys took me in after my family kicked me out when I was about your son's age. They're okay."

May looked around at the curious, milling children. "Who're all these kids? Are they _all_ …?"

"Most are mutants, yeah." said Madison. "More than half the kids on this campus right now were detainees in the Sentinel Program. We're still trying to reunite them with their families, the ones who have families, anyway."

"So you work here?" asked Peter.

"Not regularly, but when these rescues started, they needed every warm adult body available." Madison shrugged. "I'm not much of a teacher, but I can do tricks and babysit." He gestured with his head towards the Secret Avengers. "They were nice enough to lend a hand too."

Mr. Stark asked, "You let _him_ supervise children?"

Almost everyone winced, but Wanda Maximoff raised her chin. "Bucky's very popular with them, actually. He's good with children, very responsible."

Peter looked nervously at Mr. Stark, who was standing almost as close to Peter as May. "So he's here?" he couldn't help asking.

"Yes, he just thought…this introduction was awkward enough already," said Captain America. There was no mistaking him, even with the facial hair and no red, white, or blue anywhere on his clothes.

Cyclops took a step forward. "Mr. Stark, Charles said you wanted to talk. He's in his office. Mrs. Parker, why don't you go meet him, and hear about the school? We'll give Peter a tour."

Peter hesitated, sensing Mr. Stark pulling even closer to him. He also wasn't sure how May would take to the idea, but to his surprise, she answered, "Sure. That sounds fine." When Peter look back, she was looking at Mr. Stark was narrowed eyes. "Shall we?"

Mr. Stark hesitated, then stepped away from Peter and followed Cyclops up the stairs. He and May both looked back, but if anything, it was Mr. Stark who looked the most anxiously at Peter. Peter gulped, then forced himself to stop staring and smile when Wanda Maximoff came towards him. "Hi."

"You're looking so much better," she said.

 _So are you,_ he almost said, then hastily amended it, "I, uh, wanted to thank you, for what you did. I know you helped get me out of the prison and…y'know, after, with those cuffs and when I couldn't sleep."

"You're very welcome," she answered. "It's good to meet you in person. Do you remember Sam?"

Peter remembered Falcon better from Leipzig, though he had a few vague memories of seeing him that first night in the infirmary. Falcon shook Peter's hand and winked at him. "Don't worry, nobody's gonna mention your alter-ego." Peter felt himself blush. "Sam Wilson."

"Peter Parker."

Out of all the ways Peter had dreamed of meeting the rest of the Avengers face-to-face, this wasn't it. Meeting T'Challa, king of Wakanda was intimidating as hell, but at least nobody laughed when Peter stammered through the introduction. T'Challa was the one who introduced Peter to the other X-Men who'd been on the Raft for the rescue, including Logan and Kitty Pryde, who'd been part of the group that helped get Peter out.

Peter couldn't help looking around, and Captain America beckoned him down the steps. "Bucky's here, he just thought it'd be simpler if he kept a little distance from Tony."

"Yeah, I…know about them." Only Wanda, Captain America, and Madison took Peter on the "tour". Around a hedge was another collection of red brick buildings, a huge basketball court, and a still-covered pool, and there Peter set eyes on the Winter Soldier again.

Only…not the Winter Soldier. The man sitting on a bench surrounded by chattering preteens didn't much resemble the man that Peter remembered fighting in Leipzig. Well, the face and the hair were the same, even the scruff. But this man wore blue jeans and a long-sleeved green shirt, and he was smiling at something one of the kids was saying.

Peter felt a rush of remorse. _I was trying to help capture this guy, and I didn't have a clue what it was all about. I was trying to capture all of them, and I really didn't know why._

Madison broke Peter out of his musings by chuckling, "He is popular with the girls, that one."

Wanda snorted. "He had three little sisters once. He knows what he's doing."

"I'm sure _he_ knows what he's doing, I'm just saying, the girls know what they're doing too."

Captain America grinned. "Fair point. Bucky was a lady-killer even back when he was that age."

Barnes looked up and saw the Avengers and Peter approaching, and said something to the kids, rising to meet them. Peter swallowed hard. He almost stopped walking, but the others kept moving, and it'd look weird if he stopped. If anyone else noticed how awkward he felt, they were nice enough to pretend otherwise. "Bucky," said Captain America. "This is Peter Parker."

"H-hi," Peter stammered as he shook Barnes' hand. It was Barnes' right hand, flesh and blood. Peter got a brief glimpse of the metal hand, mostly hidden in Barnes' pocket. He made himself meet Barnes' eyes. "I…uh…wanted to say thanks. You saved my life."

The kids broke into murmurs at that. "You're welcome," said Barnes.

Peter couldn't make his mind stop racing now that he was actually face-to-face with this man. _He's, like, a hundred years old. He was a war hero back in World War II…then they thought he died but Hydra took him prisoner and turned him into the Winter Soldier. He did assassinations for them. He killed Mr. Stark's parents. Then Captain America found him and got him back. But Mr. Stark still wants to kill him. Mr. Stark blew the Winter Soldier's metal arm off, and he was proud of it. I was afraid Mr. Stark would kill him right there in that prison, after he got shot protecting me._

He was vaguely aware of Wanda and Cap and Madison, wandering away to distract the curious kids. Barnes broke the silence. "You must have enhanced healing. You're looking a lot better."

Peter nodded. "Yeah, I heal fast now. What about…" He frowned to himself, searching his hazy memory. "There were other kids, where they had me. Are they okay?"

"Yeah, they're recovering, just not quite as fast as you. You want to go meet them?"

"Maybe later." Peter's throat was already getting tight, his heart was pounding, and he hadn't even managed to broach the subject yet. "M-Mr. Barnes - "

"Call me Bucky." His eyes were…soft, and so was his voice. In all those pictures that Mr. Stark circulated, the Winter Soldier really did look like a terminator, something unfeeling and inhuman. But… _Bucky_ just looked like a person. A kind of…sad person. "Steve said you wanted to talk to me."

Peter nodded and couldn't look at him anymore. "They…when they had me…" His throat closed and it was long, embarrassing moments before he had the breath to talk again. "They wouldn't tell me what they wanted. I would've done what they wanted," he whispered.

Bucky sighed. "I know. You're not alone; the other kids said the same thing." When Peter looked up, Bucky was looking away. "I don't think your instincts are wrong. The Sentinel Program wasn't just about detaining and suppressing mutants and enhanced humans, they were…picking 'em out for something. Maybe not exactly like the Winter Soldiers, but close enough that it doesn't make much difference." He took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and Peter felt shitty for asking him to talk about this. What kind of memories did Bucky Barnes have after _fifty years_ of that? Or did he remember it at all? Before Peter could figure out a way out of the conversation, Bucky turned and met Peter's eyes again. "Kid, you didn't fail in there, no matter what you said or did. You're not weak, or a coward."

Peter shuddered, shutting his eyes, and felt a hand on his shoulder. It was Bucky's metal hand – Peter jumped, and Bucky took it away, then Peter stammered, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, it's okay, I didn't - "

"It's all right. It's all right. Listen…" Bucky sighed again. "I wish I had some explanation for you, some way to make it all make sense. If it makes you feel any better, you're not the first kid from that 'special program' to ask me this – hell, you're not even one of the first ten." Weirdly, that did make Peter feel a little better. "You're definitely not the only one who feels like you should've held out longer, and every one of you're wrong."

"Did they…did they make anybody _do_ anything?" Peter immediately wished he hadn't asked when Bucky slowly nodded.

"It's on them. Not you. I'm sorry we didn't get to all of you sooner."

Peter looked up at him. "'s not your fault." Bucky laughed quietly. Even his laugh sounded kind of sad. "None of it. None of it's your fault." They both knew Peter was talking about more than the rescue from the Raft.

Bucky smiled. "Now you sound like Steve. I thought he had to have heard wrong, when he said Stark was bringing you to talk to me. You're quite a kid. Even after what they put you through, I remember you begging Stark for _my_ life. That's not something you'd have done if you were really under their control."

Peter had to admit he hadn't thought of it that way. "He still doesn't…understand. You…that you weren't really…"

"Kid…Peter…it's okay. Stark doesn't need to understand; that's not on him, to understand who was really in control over what happened to his family. He saw it: it was my face, my hands. I've got no right to ask him to get over that."

Peter rubbed his eyes furiously. "But how…how'd you come back? That's – what I really wanted to know," he admitted. "How'd you come back from that, after fifty years?"

Bucky was quiet for so long, Peter thought maybe he wouldn't answer – or couldn't answer. But eventually, he murmured, "It's complicated. I'm…not really sure myself. I know it was Steve. He'd been there my whole life. He was the last thing I remembered…then he was the first thing I remembered. The rest's been coming back in pieces."

"There's still stuff you don't remember?!" Peter blurted. Bucky nodded. Peter shivered. It'd been so lonely, so painful, so scary, desperately wanting May and home over the roaring noise and glaring lights and pain until Peter was sure he was going to go crazy. How long would it have taken…what would've happened if he hadn't had May and home to hold onto? Would that've made it worse? Or better?

"I'm sorry I don't have more answers for you."

"It's okay," Peter murmured automatically. "I guess I – I kind of knew…it's not anything simple. Doesn't really make sense."

"No. It never did. I don't think it ever will for any of us."

 _ **To Be Continued...**_

 _ **Coming Soon:**_ _Tony angsts over Peter's connection with Bucky while May feels vindictive - and Professor Charles Xavier tells them both to get a grip. Our heroes reach a detente as the first hammer comes down on the Sentinel Program!_

 **PLEASE don't forget to review!**


	14. Chapter 14

_**Author's Notes:**_ _As a token of my gratitude for the incredible response to the last chapter - and because I'll be traveling tomorrow - here is the next chapter a day early! Thank you all so much for the feedback!_

 _ **Canon Note/Plug:** My take on Charles Xavier and his relationship with the X-Men and Scott Summers/Cyclops is heavily influenced by the great Minisinoo, whose magnificent work in multiple fandoms can be found on ff dot net. _

**Chapter Fourteen**

Tony didn't make it to Charles Xavier's office before he got distracted and stopped in his tracks. One of the hallway windows overlooked the school grounds near the basketball court. When Tony saw Peter and Barnes standing there together, alone, he just stopped and went blind and deaf to everything else around him.

When Barnes put his hand on Peter's shoulder, it was all Tony could do not to punch out the window.

 _Get the fuck over it, Stark,_ he thought. _You blew the kid off, used him in Germany, then tossed him aside. Made him a suit, threw him in over his head, then fobbed him off on Happy, only popped back in long enough to lecture him or yell at him. You didn't even find him when he needed you the most – Barnes and Rogers are the ones who found him. You've got no claim to him. You never did._

Even so, he kept watching. He fought the urge to have Friday read their lips. Peter spoke, and Barnes answered. One looked away, then the other did, but they both always looked back at each other again. Barnes stepped closer, and Tony's fists clenched.

As if Tony needed more reasons to hate that bastard. First he'd taken Tony's parents, now he'd taken Peter.

 _As if you've got any business resenting anyone taking Peter, Stark,_ he told himself. _Do one generous thing that doesn't involve throwing money around and walk away. Rogers goes wherever Barnes leads; at least he'll be a decent role model for the kid._

A soft sound finally caught Tony's attention, and he found that May Parker also hadn't gone on to Xavier's office. She was at the next window, also watching Peter and Barnes, but the look she gave Tony was pure malice.

Well, why shouldn't she feel smug? Tony'd taken her boy away from her, encouraged him and helped him sneak around behind her back, leaving her to be terrorized for ten days when she finally did find out. It stood to reason she'd be glad to see Tony drop-kicked by karma.

 _Really, Tony, May, you two are quite the matched pair when it comes to melodrama!_ said a voice in Tony's head.

Tony _and_ May jumped a mile and collided with each other. Xavier was at the end of the hallway, with a trademarkable enigmatic smile. He said aloud, "You're also giving all the telepaths and empaths in the building headaches. Come to my office, and let's all make an effort to stop brooding."

Tony's consolation over the heat in his face was that May was also bright red. Xavier looked like he was politely fighting the urge to laugh at them both when they got into his office. "I am sorry for invading your privacy, but visitors to this school often don't know how to modulate their mental voices. You're both broadcasting your thoughts and emotions at full volume."

Tony couldn't help exchanging a baffled look with May. "Uh…sorry?" he said.

"For what it's worth, anger and frustration after seeing a child you care for go through such trauma is entirely normal. However, Peter's a perceptive young man, and he is well aware of both of your feelings, which isn't at all helpful for his recovery."

 _Damn it._ Tony ignored the chairs while May sat down heavily in one. "I know," she croaked, her elbows on Xavier's desk with her forehead in her hands. "Peter knows, and I need to stop hating you."

Xavier held out his hands until she took them. "I didn't say you're not allowed to be angry; of course, you are. But there's a broad spectrum between justifiable anger and hatred."

Tony rubbed the bridge of his nose. "This is all very touching, but it's kind of a moot point now." _He's out there getting hugs from the Winter Soldier; May doesn't have to worry about me anymore._

Xavier shot him a droll look. "I did mention you're _both_ prone to melodramatics. Tony, the fact that Peter feels a connection to the man who saved his life doesn't mean there's no room in his life for you. On the contrary. You mean a great deal to him, and if you withdraw _again,_ he'll be deeply hurt."

"What…Xavier, c'mon, you're in my head, you know how clueless I am when it comes to kids!" Tony pressed a hand against the window and stared out at the dozens of kids romping around outside. This was the opposite side of the building from Peter and Barnes, but Tony could see Sam Wilson below, doing "airplane run" with a whole stream of little ducklings behind him – there must've been fifty of them. "I've already done him more harm than good."

"Even if that _were_ true, to simply abandon him now would solidify it." Was Xavier seriously suggesting Tony _hadn't_ done Peter more harm than good? Tony turned around, and Xavier just nodded. "Peter has a lifetime ahead of him for you to correct mistakes you've made."

His chest embarrassingly tight, Tony asked, "You speaking from experience?"

"Yes. I haven't always been successful as a teacher or mentor. Far from it. But you'd be amazed at the capacity children have to forgive even when they understand our failings." Xavier's gaze slipped to May. "And their capacity to love and need love, even in different ways."

May sobbed once and started wiping her face. "Here I wanted to ask you about scholarships."

Xavier chuckled. "They're available, I promise. The better term is sanctuary, because I don't make the protection of this school contingent on a student's assets, or their family's. As you know, we're primarily for mutants, but Peter wouldn't be the first non-mutant child here, and he won't be the last."

"And it's…safe?"

Xavier sighed and admitted, "I can't promise that this school is impregnable, I'm afraid. Our whereabouts are known, and the fact that most of our students and teachers are mutants is also known. One day the bad press of an all-out assault on a school will be outweighed by the anti-mutant agenda or the desire to apprehend my team."

"So you're the leader of these…X-Men?" May asked.

"Oh no, I can't claim that. On the contrary: as a pacifist, I was highly against their formation. The credit for their heroism goes to Scott Summers, who I believe you've seen in action. He's my son in neither name nor blood, but in every other way that matters." Xavier smiled first at May, then at Tony. "He does still have blood family, and his relationship with them has been, let's say, varied. So believe me when I say that I understand what you're going through. There've been many times that I've been bitterly jealous of them, and felt they and others were unworthy of his loyalty – or that I myself was."

"Why're you telling us this?" asked Tony. The thing was, he had no doubt that it was true. So the only real question was why. _Apart from the fact that May Parker and I are ten feet away from settling our issues over Peter through trial by combat, and I'd challenge Barnes in a heartbeat if I thought I could win it._

"For the same reason I want to help Peter and other children caught up in this latest hateful agenda, whether they're mutants or not, and the same reason I want peace between the X-Men and the Avengers. I hope that by making all this available to everyone, it will spread, because I believe everyone is deserving."

Tony laughed quietly. "Anyone ever tell you that you've got a messiah complex?"

"Quite a few, actually, but it never hurts to remind me." Xavier said that in a cheerful voice, and May burst into hysterical giggles.

"How long are Cap and his team staying here?" Tony asked. _Meaning how long is Barnes here?_

Tony had no doubt Xavier got the message. "After what they've done to help us, we'll gladly have them here as long as they wish, and they'll always be welcome in the future." But he was polite enough to only answer the second question inside Tony's head. _As for James, he's welcome also, though he's reluctant to accept out of concern that he'll put the school and students in greater danger._

 _I suppose you agree with everyone else who thinks he's not responsible for what he did as the Winter Soldier,_ Tony thought at him.

 _We both know that what I think of that is irrelevant to you at this point, Tony. But for all the reasons I've just explained, even if James had acted of his own free will in service of Hydra, I would still offer him the chance to find a new path here._

Tony closed his eyes, remembering another man's voice in a cave in Afghanistan: _"Don't waste your life, Stark._ "

Why had Barnes protected Peter? The only motive Tony had thought might drive the bastard to do anything before was protection of Steve Rogers.

 _The cameras in the Raft were not disabled, you know. My team has the footage._

Tony didn't open his eyes. _And?_

 _And James Barnes, with his skills, could certainly have escaped the prison guards without injury if he hadn't been shielding Peter. Instead, he put Peter's life above his own, to the point that when his weapons ran out of ammunition, he turned his back on their attackers and used his own body. Even as badly injured and exhausted as Peter was, he recognized that._

 _So I don't have the right to want justice for my parents anymore?_

 _Of course, you do._

May had picked up that something was going on, and stammered, "W-what are you…?"

"My apologies, just a brief private conversation," said Xavier. "As I was saying earlier, there's a place here for both Peter and you."

"What?!" May blurted. Tony opened his eyes and saw shock in her face, but also delight, like she hadn't dared to hope for it. "Me? How – what could I - ?

"As you can see, we're a large campus with a large student body. We've grown considerably in the past year. There are dozens of children for every adult, and you wouldn't be the first parent or guardian to bring your child here and join our faculty. It's a great relief for those children without families, to see that there are families who don't desert each other during difficult times. But," Xavier raised a hand. "You must include Peter in that decision. He's old enough to have his desires taken into account."

May sighed. "Yeah, I know. I'll talk to him."

"Why don't I have Scott give you a tour, May? You can learn more about day-to-day life from him and rejoin Peter."

Tony waited until May had gone, thinking that maybe, just maybe, the look she cast back at Tony from the doorway was a little less baleful. Then Tony met Xavier's eyes for only a second before shutting his own again. "I know. As long as I blame Barnes for my parents, Peter'll blame himself for whatever happened in the Raft."

Xavier didn't answer. That was answer enough.

 _So there's nothing to do but move on._ "What can I do? For you? For these kids?"

"You already know that as well," said Xavier. "Advocate for us. Oppose internment and suspicion based on nothing but abilities, rather than actions. You have tremendous power that has nothing to do with Iron Man, but even for you, it's not always easy to wield it against the force of human hate."

"Okay, Yoda."

"I've been called that many times as well," said Xavier. Tony had to grin. "Like you, I accept the stereotypes, because they can yield a result that's important to me. Tony," Xavier leaned forward. "You made many mistakes with Peter, just as I've done with many children I taught. Realizing that is hard, as is seeing _his_ realization. Even May Parker knows that to lose you now would devastate Peter, and he's already been devastated more than once. You've let fear of failure drive you to many tragic choices. Don't let this become another."

* * *

The school was beautiful. By the end of her walking tour, May liked Scott Summers and just about every teacher she met. (Well, Logan/Wolverine seemed a little…not-teacher-material, but the kids clearly adored him.) The place was like an American Hogwarts, except without dementors, _and_ she actually wouldn't have to consign her child to months away from her.

They met Peter on his return from the basement infirmary, the one place May hadn't been shown. "It's pretty crowded down there right now, after all the rescues," Mr. Summers explained. "The four other kids we took out of the Raft's 'special program' wanted to meet Peter, and he wanted to meet them, but otherwise, we're trying to keep traffic down."

Peter looked relieved to see May, and let her hug him without even a cringe. "How are they?" she asked.

"Everyone down there's…I guess they're okay," said Peter. He didn't let go of May right away, and that told her how unsettled he was. "It's taking most of them longer to heal than it did me. One of them, Hisako, she was a student here. The Sentinels grabbed her at the airport when she was leaving for her grandmother's funeral. She'd been in there six days, but the other three from the Raft, they'd been there for over a month." May tightened her grip on him convulsively.

"We're still working on finding their families," said Mr. Summers. "At least one of them was a runaway, but we may have some luck as they recover enough to tell us a little more about where they came from. We're still strangers to most of them, and they're afraid for their families."

That was an unsettling thought. But now that Peter'd gotten to know these people, maybe the place wouldn't be so alien to him. "Can Peter and I talk outside?" May asked.

"Certainly."

Once they were back under the spring sun, May wandered with Peter over the grass. "This is a beautiful campus."

"Yeah."

Damn. He sounded less than enthusiastic. She came right out with it. "Peter…what would you think about transferring here from MSST?" As she feared, he looked absolutely stricken. She put a hand on his shoulder. "It's just – they'd take me too, as faculty, even without experience." Peter faltered. "And…it just seems so much _safer_ , away from the city, protected by the X-Men team." _With all these trained people around, you wouldn't have to be Spider-Man, patrolling the neighborhood anymore._ She held that back. Peter wouldn't consider that a plus.

To her dismay, he looked at his feet and murmured, "'s your decision, May - "

" – _no._ " She tugged at his chin, trying to get him to look at her. "Don't say that. You're allowed to have an opinion and I want – I _need_ to know what you want. This isn't just about me, it'll never just be about me. Baby, look at me. Talk to me. It's okay."

He did look at her, but his eyes were red-rimmed, and his lips trembled. She put her hand on his shoulder and didn't let go. "I…May, I…this place is great, I just…I want to go home. I'm Spider-Man. I want to keep being Spider-Man. Where I can help people." He trembled, and she brushed away the few tears that escaped. "Please don't hate me for it."

"Oh, for God's sake." She pulled him into a hug and kissed him on the forehead. "Please tell me you don't actually think _that's_ a possibility."

He let out a shaky laugh. "Nuh, I really don't. Just sometimes, y'know, it's like monsters under the bed. I get scared of stuff even when I know it's not real."

May tugged his chin again to make him look at her. "A monster is more likely to come slithering out from under your bed than me _ever_ hating you for anything, Peter Benjamin Parker. Never, ever forget that." He let out a long sigh and leaned his head against her shoulder. Still not quite back to his old boundless energy, though today had certainly put them both through the emotional wringer. Speaking of which, she kept her voice light. "I'll talk to Mr. Stark about what to do then, to make sure the Sentinels and the government will leave you alone. He had a plan before. We'll work something out."

* * *

Wanda was waiting at the bottom of the outside steps when Stark came down. "You didn't bring Vision with you?" she asked him.

Stark stopped, genuinely surprised. "Er – no, I figured the number of visitors should be a minimum. That's why I drove."

"Oh." She looked out over the grounds for a moment, then made up her mind and said, "Tell him…tell him I said hello."

She didn't have to look at him to sense the emotions that ran through Tony. "Will do." She could feel him smile.

A few minutes later, Peter and his aunt reappeared, talking to Steve and Bucky. May was profusely expressing her gratitude for what Bucky'd done in the Raft, to Steve's joy and Bucky's sheepish pleasure. The two Avengers faltered when they spotted Tony next to Wanda, and Bucky took a step back, not wanting to put Peter under pressure by escorting the boy any closer.

To the shock of all concerned who weren't telepaths or empaths, Tony met Bucky's eyes and nodded. Few were more shocked than Bucky. So he and Steve stayed with Peter and May, escorting them back to Tony. The two men said nothing to each other, but the fact that they were willing to stand within a few feet spoke volumes.

"We're not going to stay here," May told Tony. "If you think we can make it safe for Peter at home, he'll stay at MSST."

"I'll make it safe," said Tony. It was more than a reassurance. It was a vow, a blood oath. "You ready to go, kid?"

Peter nodded, brightening as Tony clapped him on the shoulder. Peter detoured on the walk down to the car to catch Scott Summers, Logan, and Kitty Pryde, and thank them again for their part in his rescue, and tell them he was going back to his old school. "I just want to stay where I am, but this school…it's amazing, don't get me wrong."

"No offense taken, we promise," said Kitty, and kissed him on the cheek. She whispered in his ear, "Good luck, Spider-Man."

Peter blushed furiously, and they all grinned. "Hey...have you got cards for this school or anything? I was thinking...I've seen people a couple of times who I thought maybe were mutants. It's hard to tell, y'know, whether it's a trick or they're just hiding their powers. Maybe if they knew somewhere was safe, they'd feel better."

"Sure." Scott Summers fished in his pocket for a pack of business cards.

"Thanks. I'll keep 'em in my suit when I'm on patrol."

May Parker was working admirably hard on restraining her reactions. Only Wanda and the other telepaths and empaths sensed her internal wince at the mention of Peter patrolling again. Outwardly, she smiled.

Stark finished a call to someone and came back around the car to tell Steve and Scott Summers, "Lie low if you can for a few days. Rhodey's making our announcement of withdrawal from the Sokovia Accords today. I'm gonna start leaking footage of what was going on inside those detention centers in the next few hours, so all hell's gonna break loose in the media."

"What does that mean for our kids?" asked Logan.

"The victims' faces will be blurred, don't worry. No names. It'll just be very obvious that this was happening to children. Then I'm gonna storm into the public and rip the Sentinel Program a new one for kidnapping my intern, who is absolutely _not_ Spider-Man." Several of them chuckled, but Peter couldn't quite hide his flinch. Stark, to Wanda's surprise, patted the boy sympathetically. "Hey, plausible deniability, kid. It'll protect you and your aunt."

"I know," Peter murmured.

"T'Challa's planning to raise hell that the vibranium he sold to the U.S. for 'medical research' wound up being used to shackle some of those kids, and that they kidnapped some Wakandan citizens," said Steve. "This Sentinel Program is going to wind up costing the American government a lot of money and even more bad press."

"It damn well should," muttered May. "How long will it be before the rest of the Avengers are back again? I'd feel better knowing Peter has some backup."

Everyone looked at Stark. He only faltered for a second before answering. "Not long, if I have my way," he said, and affected his usual cocky smile for Peter's benefit. "And I usually have my way."

It was Peter who actually succeeded in cutting through the remaining tension. "I guess that means they're never going to stop with those Captain America pep talk videos in school, are they?"

Reactions varied, but all were priceless. Steve buried his face in his hands and groaned. Bucky exclaimed, "Wait, _what?_ " and Sam just doubled over laughing.

Natasha actually clapped her hands and squealed, "You've _seen_ those?!" as all the onlookers either burst into laughter or started googling on their phones.

"See, you shoulda picked XSGY after all, kid," said Logan. "We don't show 'em!"

"Why not?" asked May.

"Probably because they're _lame!_ " Peter laughed.

Ignoring Bucky's demands for an explanation, Steve just groaned, "Nine hours of my life I'll never get back, filming those things. It was _agony._ "

Peter retorted, "Hey, we're the ones who have to watch them!"

Sam pushed past the others and clapped Peter on the shoulders. "You think those are bad, you oughtta see the outtakes!"

"There's outtakes, seriously?!" Kitty grabbed her phone, with Bucky leaning eagerly over her shoulder.

Steve pointed at Tony. "I am never forgiving you _or_ Pepper for talking me into that."

"I'll send her your love, Cap." Tony kissed the tips of his fingers. "You kids have fun - and remember, they filmed eighteen of those; three just never got released. The whole set and the outtakes are on YouTube."

"Oooh!"

"Dammit, Stark!" Steve made to retreat, but Bucky hauled him back as the group waved farewell to Peter and May and Stark. Wanda giggled and whooped along with the rest over the videos, and Steve resigned himself to being the butt of many jokes for the near-future. But Wanda knew Steve didn't really mind, not if it had Peter Parker laughing on the way home.

* * *

 ** _AVENGERS END COMPLIANCE WITH SOKOVIA ACCORDS!_**

 ** _Stark, Rhodes, and Vision: Either end internment of enhanced children or no more Avengers!_**

 _The Justice Department is denying the Avengers' allegations that the Sokovia Accords have been used to implement the Sentinel Program, which in turn resulted in the arrest and internment, and even torture of people suspected of being mutants or enhanced. This powerful statement adds to complaints by human rights advocates that the Sentinel Program is holding thousands of detainees in prisons throughout the US and abroad, without access to counsel or contact with their families._

 _Members of Congress and local government officials, including many former SHIELD personnel, have demanded an investigation into the Sentinel Program. "These complaints of human rights violations should be reason enough, and America cannot afford to lose the Avengers!"_

* * *

 ** _ROSS THREATENS LEGAL ACTION AGAINST AVENGERS!_**

 ** _The Secretary of State said publicly that the Avengers are bound by the Sokovia Accords, and failure to abide by them may result in prosecution._**

 _While Tony Stark is generally considered the "loose cannon" of the Avengers, it was Colonel James Rhodes, aka War Machine/Iron Patriot, who responded to Ross's threat by leaning towards cameras outside the Pentagon and said, "You do that, Mr. Secretary. You do that."_

* * *

 ** _LEAKS FROM HELL: HORROR INSIDE SENTINEL DETENTION CENTERS!_**

 ** _Over 700 video clips were leaked from Sentinel Program detention centers showing inhumane conditions and rampant abuse of detainees, most of whom were children!_**

* * *

 ** _PRESIDENT BUNT MAINTAINS SENTINEL PROGRAM IS NECESSARY!_**

 ** _"Mutant and enhanced terrorism is a huge threat"!_**

* * *

 ** _KING OF WAKANDA LASHES OUT AT BUNT ADMINISTRATION!_**

 ** _King T'Challa withdraws all support for Sokovia Accords and ends all sales contracts for vibranium to the United States due to "unforgivable human rights abuses"._**

 _T'Challa alleges vibranium sold to the U.S. for medical research was instead used for shackles and restraint devices in detention centers, which held seven Wakandan citizens including two teenaged girls._

 _This breakdown of US/Wakanda relations is being deemed "catastrophic" by technology and medical research and development organizations, and analysts fear America's ability to compete in international science and technology markets has suffered a devastating blow!_

* * *

 ** _BUNT BACKTRACKS ON SENTINEL PROGRAM AND SOKOVIA ACCORDS, ACCUSES ROSS OF OVERSTEPPING!_**

 ** _President Bunt tweeted early this morning that "Thunderbolt is a Dunderhed [sic]!_**

* * *

 ** _To Be Continued..._**

 ** _Coming Soon:_** _Ned, MJ, and the other students of Midtown School of Science and Technology learn the fate of Peter Parker at the hands of the Sentinel Program! After the cover story takes hold, May and Tony reach a private accord of their own._

 **PLEASE don't forget to review!**


	15. Chapter 15

_**Author's Notes:**_ _My apologies for the delay in this update, dear readers. I'm in Florida, so as you can imagine, very busy and very distracted for the last few days. Looks like I'm going to avoid a direct hit by Irma (though I've prepared and stocked up as best I can), but please keep my state and the Caribbean in your thoughts this weekend._

 ** _Canon_** _ **Note** : I'm guestimating that Peter was around age six or seven at the time of Iron Man 2, making it about nine years before Homecoming and Civil War in the timeline._

 **Chapter Fifteen**

 ** _SENTINEL VICTIM, STARK INDUSTRIES INTERN COMING FORWARD!_**

 ** _Stark Industries releases statement on behalf of Peter Parker, 16, taken from school by Sentinel agents and held for 10 days without contact with his family or counsel._**

* * *

 ** _DOCTORS: TEEN WAS IN "HORRIFIC CONDITION" AFTER 10 DAYS IN SENTINEL PROGRAM DETENTION CENTER!_**

 _"The Sentinel Program treated Peter Parker in ways you'd expect to see in Gitmo, not on American citizens, and it's a human rights violation either way," said Dr. Thomas Milligan, a Stark Industries staff physician who treated Parker. "He suffered severe sleep deprivation, and reported his eyes being taped open and music being blasted to prevent him from sleeping. He was malnourished and dehydrated, and had a variety of drugs in his system."_

 _Asked if Parker is a mutant, Milligan said, "No, Peter Parker is neither a mutant, nor an Inhuman, nor is there any indication of human-induced enhancement in his body, and even if he was any of those, the way he was treated would still be shameful. Peter Parker is an American child, taken from school without any contact with his family or counsel, and tortured - that's not an exaggeration - for 10 days. This is an outrage."_

* * *

In the halls and classrooms of Midtown School of Science & Technology, kids clustered around each other's phones and classroom computers every time a new update hit the news about Peter Parker. Principal Morita gave morning announcements about what _not_ to say to the reporters who were soon camped outside the gates every day.

MJ was one of the few people Ned could stand to hang out with after Peter was rescued, because while other kids nagged at him with questions, she never did. But she always quietly asked him, "Is he doing okay?" every morning. Mindful of Mr. Stark's warnings, Ned confirmed Peter was getting better, but didn't say any more, and she didn't press.

Even so, Ned had a feeling MJ was more worried about Peter himself than any of the school drama queens carrying on in front of the cameras.

Ned and MJ read the interview with the Stark Industries doctor in the library. Kids around them whispered and gasped and repeated the words over and over,

" _Tortured..."_

 _"Starved..."_

 _"Sleep deprivation...drugs…"_

MJ stared at the article and said nothing for almost five minutes, then finally muttered, "I think I'm gonna puke," and hurried out of the room.

Ned hadn't told her what Peter had looked like the first time Peter's Aunt May brought him to Avengers headquarters to yell at him. He'd thrown up after getting home that day.

Peter had looked better every time Ned had visited since then, but he'd still been tense and stressed, despite everything Mr. Stark and Aunt May had been trying to do to make him comfortable. The more Ned learned about what had happened to Peter, the more he wondered how Peter would ever be comfortable again. Ned's own nightmares were bad enough.

On top of all that, now Peter was going to have to lie and say he wasn't Spider-Man just to make himself safe.

A few hours after the doctor interview appeared online to talk about Peter's torture in the detention center, one of the NYPD stations leaked the blood test that the Sentinel agents had been doing one the kids they picked up. Some hematologist hired by Stark Industries popped up and started talking about all the different false positives it could get.

 _"Most of those victims were under 18, so I can't name names, but here's one example I have permission for: Peter Parker. 16-year-old Caucasian male, resident of Queens, NY. This young boy is neither a mutant nor enhanced by human intervention, yet the test comes back positive."_

 _"Can you tell us why, Dr. Redfern?"_

 _"There are a number of conditions that yield false positives: oh, here, Tony Stark himself comes back positive, probably due to his heart condition. His red blood cells and blood oxygen are affected even though his condition is under control. I see...every single sample with Type I diabetes comes in positive. Here we have a minor case of anemia - very common during puberty. Also positive."_

 _"So you're saying that this little blood test could have resulted in a large number of children being detained who aren't even actually mutants or enhanced?"_

 _"That's correct. I wouldn't rely on this test for any law enforcement or medical purpose. Whoever set the parameters made them far too broad and clearly knew nothing about human anatomy."_

* * *

 ** _ROSS ACCUSES STARK OF PARTICIPATING IN ASSAULT ON DETENTION CENTERS!_**

 ** _Stark: "I went in there when Captain America found my intern shackled to the walls, you're damn right. What're you gonna do about it?"_**

 _Multiple Sentinel Program detention centers have been raided by groups such as the "rogue Avengers" and the mutant organization called the X-Men. However, these attacks are being called liberations by an increasing number of historians and commentators due to the treatment of the detainees and rampant civil rights violations by Sentinel agents. Every Sentinel Program detention center outside the United States has now been closed by demand of the government of the nation in which that center is located, such as Morocco, Canada, Mexico, Saudi Arabia, and Russia. There is increasing pressure to close the remaining detention centers on American soil._

 _Revelations about Sentinel Program abuses have added to the pressure against the Sokovia Accords and its proponents. Thirteen nations, including the kingdom of Wakanda, have withdrawn from the Accords, and over forty others are demanding that they be drastically amended to alleviate the potential for human rights abuses. Lawsuits have been filed by human rights advocates in nearly every signatory nation, alleging that the Accords are the vehicle for massive abuse of their citizens._

 _Colonel James Rhodes aka War Machine/Iron Patriot has said he will "gladly" testify before a special joint congressional committee on the Sokovia Accords, and presented a paper to the Pentagon urging that the United States withdraw from the Accords. Despite pressure from the State Department, Rhodes, the artificial human Vision, and Tony Stark aka Iron Man have vowed that the Avengers will no longer participate in enforcement of the Accords._

 _Experts say Secretary of State Thaddeus Ross's threats against the Avengers are empty, as the Justice Department has leaked that U.S. Attorneys are not inclined to prosecute the Avengers - but are beginning to build cases against Sentinel Program agents under pressure from the parents and advocates of victims._

* * *

 ** _LEAKED SENTINEL PROGRAM DOCUMENTS: HUNDREDS OF REPORTS OF ALLEGED MUTATIONS AND ENHANCEMENTS CAME FROM CLASSMATES, NEIGHBORS, NOT EXPERTS!_**

 _NYPD source reported that the tips directing Sentinels to Peter Parker came from another student at Midtown School of Science & Technology. ACLU calls it a modern-day witch hunt with spectral evidence!_

* * *

 ** _STARK INTERN, SENTINEL PROGRAM DETAINEE PETER PARKER TO SPEAK AT AVENGERS COMPOUND!_**

* * *

Ned sprinted into Physics. "Ms. Warren, please, we've gotta turn the TV on! Peter's giving a press conference!"

Ms. Warren didn't like letting students watch TV during class time even when there was big breaking news. Today, however, she did.

A very nervous-looking Peter Parker was standing between Mr. Stark and his Aunt May in front of a Stark Industries podium. " _You've all had the chance to read Peter's statement,"_ said Mr. Stark. " _Let's keep the questions under control."_

"Peter looks okay," someone whispered.

"Shh!"

Peter took the podium, wearing the same suit and tie he'd worn for Homecoming. Except, Ned was sure it had fit him better at Homecoming; now it looked loose. " _Hi, I'm Peter Parker. I'm...here to answer your questions."_

Ms. Warren was crying already, and they hadn't even started talking about the bad stuff. Reporters' hands shot up, and even that seemed to throw Peter. He looked helplessly at Stark, who pointed into the room. " _Ms. Everhart?_ "

At least she sounded nice. " _Peter, do you know why the Sentinel agents picked you up in the first place?"_

Peter shook his head, then at somebody's prompting, stammered, " _N-no, not really. Just rumors and theories._ "

" _What sort of theories?"_

 _"They, uh - I heard...they thought I might - might be Spider-Man."_

Half the reporters leaped to their feet, and Peter jumped back. His reaction got them all to sit back down and shut up with Stark only having to snap at them once to take it easy. Once they'd calmed down, another reporter asked, " _Why would the Sentinel Program agents think that you were Spider-Man?"_

 _"'Cause...I - I worked with him, during my internship. I helped develop his web fluid and upgrades to his suit. I..."_ Peter chewed on his lip, then went on, " _I wasn't...supposed to talk about it, but sometimes I did. And, er, once, I - okay, a couple of times, I broke the rules and took stuff home."_

 _"So, can you confirm that you're_ not _Spider-Man?_ " asked another reporter.

Ned held his breath.

" _Y-yeah. I mean - no. I mean...I'm not Spider-Man. I can confirm that._ "

" _So can I!"_ Ned and MJ jumped as Spider-Man poked his head into the Avengers' press room. Peter hopped quickly down from the podium as Spider-Man ran up to take his place. " _Okay, ladies and gentlemen, seriously. I'm not here to talk about being a superhero or the Avengers or anything like that. I'm just here to tell you that it makes me_ sick _that this kid got put through all this by government agents who were actually looking for me._ "

" _How do we know you're really Spider-Man?"_ someone demanded.

" _I can vouch for him!"_ said Stark.

" _Where's the proof? You could have anybody in that suit,"_ another reporter argued. Aunt May tugged Peter further from the podium.

 _"You want proof? Mr. Stark, they want proof. You're not too attached to the light fixtures, are you?_ "

" _Have at it, Spidey,"_ said Stark.

 _"Man, I hate it when he calls me that._ " "Spidey," whoever he was, sounded...kind of like Peter, but not exactly. Maybe a little older. Everyone jumped both in the press room and in Ms. Warren's classroom as "Spidey" fired off his web at one of the chandeliers and vaulted sideways off the wall, then crawled across the ceiling to the light to untangle his web from it.

" _So as you can see, my web's artificial. It's not a body part. Dunno, Mr. Stark, they still look skeptical. Can you open a window?"_ Stark pointed a control, and one of the press room windows opened, as cameras lurched to capture it. " _WOOO!"_ "Spidey" leaped out the open window, doing acrobatics as he swung from his web, and the cameras cut to the view from some of the press trucks outside of the figure scampering along the outside walls.

"Wow," someone behind Ned muttered. "I kinda thought maybe it _was_ Peter."

"Man, that fucking _sucks!_ He's not Spider-Man but he still got tortured! _"_ Ms. Warren didn't even think to yell at whoever dropped the f-bomb.

After several minutes of performing, Spidey flew back into the room. " _Okay, now I think they're convinced. Put it here, Pete."_ Peter high-fived Spidey with a nervous grin, then Aunt May ushered him out. Spidey returned to the podium. " _Now that our intern's gone, I've got some things to say. First, no, I'm not telling you my name. Second, you wanna know why?"_ He pointed at the door where Peter'd gone. _"THAT'S why! Who the hell does that to a kid?"_

Ms. Everhart raised her hand, and Stark called on her again. " _How would you describe your relationship with Peter before this...incident, and has your relationship changed now?_ "

" _Sure it has. Back when he was just an intern, sure, we were friendly. He's brilliant, hard-working. He reminded me of me - a few years ago."_

 _"How many years?"_ half of the reporters chorused. Mr. Stark laughed.

 _"Mehhh, five, give or take,"_ Spidey said. " _After what he's gone through, I care a lot about him, and I don't ever want to see him or any other kid treated like that again. My point is, even if it had been me, I haven't done anything to deserve it, and I'm betting not a single one of those other kids did either."_

 _"So you're really not going to tell us your name or_ anything _about yourself!?"_ another reporter demanded.

"Spidey" was silent for several beats. Finally, he answered, " _Hell, no. I've got family, I've got friends. I've already had one intern get tortured by his own government because they thought he was me."_

 _"Are you joining the Avengers?"_

 _"I've thought about it, but not yet. I want a life and to finish my degree first."_ Several reporters actually applauded that, as did Tony Stark. In the classroom, Ms. Warren clapped her hands too and started casting pointed looks around the room.

Ned's palms stung, and he realized how hard he was clenching his fists. _It's not fair. That should be for Peter, not...whoever this dude is! Man, this sucks!_

* * *

May could tell that Peter was determined not to lose it. She was intensely relieved that his face didn't give him away the first time the replacement "Spidey" came into the room. Once the reporters were convinced, she and Peter fled to their guest suite. They didn't watch any more of the broadcast.

Happy Hogan showed up a little while later and said, "They're done. You okay, kid?"

Peter just nodded. May put an arm around him, and he leaned against her. Happy looked like he wanted to come closer, but wasn't quite sure what to do or say to make Peter feel better.

When Tony Stark entered with Spider-Man trailing after, Peter actually managed to smile at them. It broke May's heart. Watching the little acrobatics demo in the press room, the thought had occurred to her, _Maybe this guy can take over until Peter's a little older?_

She knew that must have occurred to Peter too. But she couldn't bring herself to say it. Peter was already so miserable and having to work so hard to hide it.

Stark was completely blasé about it. "Peter Parker, meet Spidey."

Peter held that pain-filled smile. "M-maybe you oughtta take over. L-looks like you've got it all down."

 _Oh, baby!_ May tightened her hold on him, but this time, he pulled away.

Stark's eyes softened. "That's not possible, kid. See?" He tapped a control, and "Spidey's" mask lifted back to reveal...what was unmistakably some kind of android.

Peter and May gaped, first at the suit, then at each other. "Life model decoy of one Peter Benjamin Parker, based on growth projections to age twenty-one," said Stark. "Expertly programmed with movements based on readings from your own suit, voice slightly adjusted to sound the slightest bit older in conversational speech, but still gets a little high-pitched when you shout. Guess what, kid, you're gonna be a tenor."

Peter didn't seem to be listening anymore. He advanced towards the...decoy in astonishment. As he got closer, May could see it better. "Spidey" was just a couple of inches taller, just a little bigger. His cheeks weren't quite as round, but she knew those eyes and that chin and that hair. "So that's...what he'll actually look like in five years?" she asked.

"As much as a computer can forecast, yep," said Happy.

Peter wrinkled his nose. "I kinda hoped I'd be hotter." Happy burst out laughing. Stark shook his head. "But who was talking? Can you make a decoy answer questions like that?"

"You'd be surprised what a life model decoy can do. I downloaded months' worth of recordings from your suit. A little programming magic to match your personality, a dash of AI, _voila._ Peter Parker 2.0, incognito."

Then all humor left Peter's face as he turned to Stark, and May swallowed hard. "Does...so does this mean...I can still be Spider-Man?"

Stark answered without hesitating. "You _are_ Spider-Man. Spider-Man's you. It's better to have your real identity undercover for a few years, but nobody can replace you, kid."

Peter bit his lip and looked at May. She nodded. His chin wobbled, and at first she didn't say anything. _You don't need my permission; you'd go out and fight crime either way._ Then she mentally kicked herself. _Maybe not permission, no._ So she crossed the few paces between them and put her hand on his cheek. _When did you get so tall?_ "I'm very proud of you," she whispered, her throat too tight to let her voice out. "Don't forget that. I love you for everything you are, and that includes Spider-Man."

Peter let out a half-laugh, half-sob and threw his arms around her. "I promise," he gasped, muffled by her hair. "No more secrets."

"Good." Humor let her get her voice back. "But you are still going to have a curfew, Peter Parker." Peter groaned, and Happy and Stark laughed.

Over Peter's shoulder, Stark met May's eyes and said, "I can't promise no risks. But I'll do everything in my power to keep him safe." May believed him. He went on to Peter, "You're coming up here at least three times a week from now on, kid. Dates are flexible, but you're training with Vision and Rhodey and me."

Peter broke away from May and turned to Stark in delight. Back with that blasé smirk, Stark went on, "I've got a team of lawyers putting some pretty intense pressure on the federal courts to drop charges again Cap and his team. All of 'em." Realizing what he meant, May's heart leapt. Judging by the look on his face, so did Peter's. "So pretty soon they'll be working with you too. Friendly neighborhood Spider-Man should still prepared for anything for bigger emergencies, maybe even being back-up on Avengers missions."

Peter's mouth moved a little before he found his voice to gasp out, "That's...that's... _awesome!_ "

"Yeah?" Stark looked…relieved. Then he grinned more easily. " _Your_ suit's in the locker room outside the main gym. Karen's got a warm-up program for you. When you're done, Vision and I'll take you through some paces."

Peter practically sprinted out the door. Happy asked May, "Is he always so...energetic?"

"Oh no," said May. "I think he's still a little worn down from everything he went through." At Happy's look of near-horror, she let herself smirk. "I promise you, he's usually _much_ worse."

"God help us all. I'm going to load up on carbs." Happy left, shaking his head.

And then there were two. Stark waited. Funny how Stark could seem so completely oblivious to anyone's needs but his own, and other times, so perceptive. _Remind you of someone you raised, May?_ She took a deep breath and put all her scattered thoughts and emotions together in some kind of order and looked Tony Stark in the eye. "I can't forgive you for how your part in this began."

To Stark's credit, he took it calmly. "Fair."

"But I'm grateful that you're involved now," she finished. Stark didn't pretend to be shocked, but there was _something_ in his eyes, like relief. She went on, "Peter's right; there's no guarantee the Sentinels wouldn't have come for him even if he'd never met you. He's still Spider-Man."

"Yeah." Stark dropped his eyes. "He's an amazing kid. And for what it's worth, I'm sorry I didn't really pay attention enough to get that, at first. Things might've been different if I had, but I can't change it now."

"Sure you can," May retorted. He blinked at her. "You can be the kind of man who's a decent role model for him - and every other kid who worships Iron Man."

Stark actually took a step back. "You're kidding, right? Lady, I'm a train wreck! Half – okay, more than half of why I'm getting Cap and his crew back here is so the kid'll get influence from Avengers who aren't me!"

That did not sound at all like an outcome that would make Peter happy - or any safer. "Don't...you... _dare_ run out on him now," May breathed, walking towards Stark. "You are and have always been his hero, first and above all the others. He can't replace you any more than you can replace Spider-Man with a twenty-one-year-old." Stark stared at her, like he honestly didn't understand what she was saying. May sighed. "I know you were pretty busy, but do you remember the drones at your Expo, nine years ago?"

"I...think I may have a vague recollection," he drawled.

May pulled out her phone and dug up a YouTube clip that Peter had saved a long time ago. Stark tapped it with a control and projected it into the air in front of them. A drone came down towards a little boy who was wearing an Iron Man helmet and brandishing a toy repulsor. The drone focused on him. That damn video still made May's heart pound.

Iron Man landed behind the boy and blasted the drone out of existence. The boy looked back. " _Nice work, kid._ "

Stark looked about as shocked as May had ever seen him. "No…way," he murmured.

May pointed to the corner of the frame. It was very blurry; the shape of a man and a woman rushing toward the scene while everyone else was rushing away.

Stark pointed his control at it, and the image came into focus. It was May and Ben, chasing after Peter in panic. "When we got to him, we expected him to be traumatized. It never even occurred to him to be scared. He just kept saying 'I got one and Iron Man said nice work'. It was all he talked about for weeks."

"I remember this," Tony whispered. "I remember him." He put out a hand to the image as if he wanted to take Peter by the shoulder and pull him back.

May couldn't help noticing it was the same pose as Ben in the background of the picture. "That's Ben, my husband. Peter's father was Ben's big brother. We weren't even sure we wanted kids; being the cool aunt and uncle would've been enough. When he was three, they went on their first vacation since he'd been born, left him with us for a week...the return flight went down in a storm."

"Yeah, I read a little about it. Not enough, in hindsight."

May eyed him. "Did you know Ben was killed just a few months before you 'recruited' Peter?" Stark winced, but nodded. "Peter blamed himself. Until I realized he was Spider-Man, I never understood why he thought he could've stopped that drug-addled punk. After he was taken, I started doing the math. There were a few Spider-Man videos on YouTube before Ben died, just acrobatics and web tricks on rooftops. Only after Ben..." She had to stop when her voice broke. "After _that_ , it was all about fighting crime. Helping people. He's never forgiven himself."

Stark closed his eyes. "I should've realized there was more to it than what he told me. I'm sorry." He sighed. "Cap's a better role model than me."

"Too bad, Stark, that's not a choice you _or_ I get to make. You want to make it up to me, to Peter, for how this began?" Stark looked disarmed, but nodded. "Then suck it up."

Stark burst out laughing. "Lady, I hate to tell you, but you and your husband contributed more to Spider-Man than I can ever take credit for. Still," he raised his hands. "I concede the point. I'll do my best." He held out a hand.

May firmly shook it. "I can live with that."

 _ **To Be Continued...**_

 _ **Coming Soon:**_ _The final full chapter has one revelation remaining for our heroes as Peter returns to school and reunites with Ned and MJ - and finds that nothing is quite the same._

 **PLEASE don't forget to review!**


	16. Chapter 16

_**Author's Notes:**_ _Thank you all for your patience these last few days! That damn hurricane had no respect for my editing schedule! However, my kitties and family and I weathered the storm with minimal damage. Many thanks for all the feedback and good wishes!_

 _ **Canon Notes** : The students named in this chapter are characters credited from the movie, based on my research. According to the writers, most of Peter's classmates were taken from the comics, though whether the MCU canon will follow their comics stories remains to be seen. I didn't know the name of Flash's girlfriend, so I just called her Jessica._

 **Chapter Sixteen**

 ** _SENTINEL PROGRAM ABANDONED!_**

 ** _Experts Anticipate Sokovia Accords Will Meet the Same Fate!_**

 _With tech powerhouse Stark Industries leading the charge to end all law enforcement contracts, and the kingdom of Wakanda ending vibranium sales, the State Department and Justice Department ended their collaboration to locate and register all mutants and individuals with enhanced abilities!_

 _Embattled Secretary of State Thaddeus Ross maintained that Tony Stark and other participants in the "liberation" of Sentinel detention centers should be prosecuted. However, as more videos of the treatment of child detainees are leaked, the Justice Department is expressing reluctance to pursue charges against Stark, the fugitive former Avengers, or the mutant vigilante organization known as the X-Men._

 _Complaints have been filed in the European Court of Human Rights and the International Criminal Court against United States officials for their unlawful arrest and detention of non-US citizens without access to assistance from their own countries. A class action lawsuit representing as many as 15,000 detainees has been filed in United States federal court, naming Thaddeus Ross and other officials responsible for implementing the Sokovia Accords as defendants._

 _Experts in international and domestic policy anticipate the Sokovia Accords themselves will be abandoned in their entirety within two years of their enactment, a devastating blow for Secretary Ross and his allies._

* * *

May insisted on driving Peter and Ned to school for the first week that Peter was due back. "Your picture is still out there too much for me to be comfortable with you taking the subway. I _promise_ , it won't be forever. Just humor me for a week or so, huh?"

Peter mock-pouted, but gave in after only a little arguing. Ned insisted on going with him the first day even though he was going early to meet with Principal Morita. "Moral support, man, you're gonna need it. The whole student body's calling you their best friend."

"It only took getting tortured for ten days to be considered cool. Imagine that," Peter sighed, staring at the car ceiling. He saw May wince and stuck his chin over the side of her chair. She tweaked his nose, and he squeaked. Ned laughed.

However, when they arrived at school, Peter discovered that Ned wasn't kidding: _everybody_ who saw Peter coming up the stairs came rushing to hug him. He didn't even know who most of them were. It was really embarrassing...and kind of empty-feeling. Peter mumbled his way through the throng, seeking an exit, and fortunately, teachers came to his rescue and led him to the principal's office.

Most of the talk with Mr. Morita was just practical stuff, plans for catching Peter up on his classes and options like after school work or a few weeks during the summer. "You don't have to make your mind up now, and I certainly don't want it to feel like we're punishing you. Mr. Harrington is hoping you'll stay on the academic decathlon team, but says he understands if it's too much for you right now."

"I'll...think about it," Peter said.

Mr. Morita smiled. "For what it's worth, we did try to instruct your classmates to give you some space when you got back. I know it may seem a little weird, but emotions have run very high even among the students who don't know you personally."

Peter hadn't really thought about it that way. "I guess that makes sense." If he'd seen another kid from MSST go through what he'd gone through, he'd be pretty freaked out too.

"Your aunt says you're seeing a private counselor, but just so you know, our student counseling office's door is always open for you, and there's no shame in going. Unless you're about to hurt yourself or someone else, everything you tell your counselor is confidential. Even I won't ever know." Peter thought, _Yeah right,_ but was caught off-guard by the keen look Mr. Morita gave him. "For example, even if you _were_ Spider-Man, no faculty in this school will ever share that with anyone."

Silence was as thick and heavy as web fluid, and Peter couldn't help meeting Morita's eyes, and he _knew._ The principal smiled. "Don't worry. Just be safe. You're already a good example, going through what you did, coming back to school, being so tough in front of those reporters. I think you'll continue to be, whatever choices you make."

Peter left the principal's office in a daze, but it wasn't all that bad. It kind of felt...like he had an ally where he'd least expected it.

* * *

The rest of the day...really kind of sucked. It sucked a lot more than Peter had imagined while he was convalescing, wanting to just forget those last weeks had happened and get back to his life.

Complete or near-strangers kept coming up and hugging him, _teachers_ were hugging him, and everyone was staring at him - it really did suck!

Worse was when he got to class with MJ and realized he hadn't seen her until now. "Sorry I didn't come see you when you got here," she said. "I figured you were swamped."

"By kids who didn't even know my name before," Peter muttered.

As lunch got closer, the hangers-on started backing off when Peter didn't want to talk about it, and Peter actually got to say hi to the rest of the decathlon team and some of the guys from robotics and band that he and Ned actually used to have conversations with before all this. Everyone was offering to share their class notes, which was kind of nice, and the teachers actually let them go to the library to photocopy them.

"If you need help, some time after class to catch up, just say the word," said Ms. Warren in Physics.

Mr. Carpenter scored mega cool points in European History by actually being willing to joke about it instead of looking at Peter like he had a terminal disease. "So, resuming the discussions we were having a month ago, how many of you still think the Sokovia Accords did _not_ violate human rights?"

Shocked, panicked silence followed, but Peter started laughing. Half the class collectively let their breath out, and Ned piped up, "Hey, Mr. Carpenter, if we get that question on the AP test, you think we could just write 'Exhibit A' and stick Peter's picture in the test book?"

"For that and every other time people start saying students don't have civil rights," MJ grumbled.

Peter grinned at her. "You know what Bill O'Reilly'll say: 'But he got four whole weeks off school, what's he complaining about!'"

It was the first time he thought a whole group of kids in class were laughing _with_ him and not _at_ him. Maybe they were forcing it - some still looked like they were at Peter's funeral instead of his first day of freedom.

It wasn't until lunch that Peter realized something: Flash Thompson hadn't said a word.

Apart from class, Flash outright avoided Peter. He was the one person from the decathlon team (and possibly the whole sophomore class) who hadn't come up to at least say hi and that they hoped Peter was feeling better.

As it turned out, Peter wasn't the only one who noticed.

Lunch was...awkward. _Everybody_ wanted Peter and Ned to sit with them, and once they went back to their usual table (sharing with MJ now instead of just "nearby"), they wound up crowded by a bunch of kids who'd hardly ever sat with them before. MJ brusquely reserved some space for the decathlon team, and Peter muttered, "Thanks."

"Hey, where's Flash? We need him if we want to talk about decathlon practice," said Cindy Moon.

"Yo, Flash, decathlon informal meeting!" Ned yelled. "Chop-chop!"

When Flash turned around and started fumbling his stuff together, something twisted Peter's insides. It wasn't his "spidey sense" as Mr. Stark annoyingly called it. It was something...deeper. Something that kind of hurt. "He okay?" Peter muttered at Ned.

"Dunno, he's been kind of messed-up lately."

"Hell, we've all been," said Abe Brown. "Though, y'know...it was like Flash only really flipped out after you got rescued and everyone heard what the government did to you!"

Everyone stared at each other as Flash made his reluctant way over. Peter could _feel_ MJ starting to breathe hard. "Hey, Flash, where you been?" she demanded. "Dontcha want to say hi to Peter?"

"H-hi Peter," Flash stammered. "Good to...see you back."

Peter just stared at him. _Mr. Stark's hack found out someone here at school reported me..._ He was still trying to make his brain process that to the possible conclusion when Ned jumped to his feet, and Peter whispered, "Ned, no, _Ned!_ "

"What're you so nervous about, Thompson? Didja think Peter was never coming back?"

" _Stop it!_ " Peter hissed desperately, but Abe and Betty Brandt and a bunch of the others were getting up, and Flash was backing up.

The cafeteria monitors came over, but not before Charlie Murphy demanded, "Why'd you think it was so funny when those creepy secret agents came to get him? We were all freaked out!"

"Maybe 'cause you're the one who gave them that 'tip'?" Ned snarled.

Flash hesitated a beat before he blurted, "N-no, no, I didn't!"

Peter…didn't believe him. Nobody else did either.

Whispers rippled through the cafeteria as Flash looked around for a friendly face and didn't find any. Now even MJ was standing up, ignoring Peter's efforts to stop her. "You told the feds, didn't you?" she growled. "You heard Peter knew Spider-Man, you _knew_ the feds were arresting people, so you told them Peter _was_ Spider-Man!"

"I - no, I..."

There were a lot of other kids getting up and coming towards them, and Peter wondered if he should really risk blowing Mr. Stark's elaborate cover story to save Flash Thompson from a beat-down, but fortunately it didn't come to that.

"Everyone, in your seats, now!" Principal Morita thundered, stalking into the cafeteria. Several kids and cafeteria monitors went running up and whispered to him, and Flash seemed frozen where he stood. Morita's face darkened, and as many times as Peter had screwed up in the past year, he had never seen Morita look anything like _this._ "Mr. Thompson," he said, very softly and scarily. "Come to my office. Now."

Flash was visibly shaking, but he obeyed, leaving the cafeteria silent as everyone stared after them.

But once Morita and Flash had gone, the floodgates reopened of people crowding around Peter and chattering and hugging until Peter ran for it, babbling that he needed to talk to Mrs. Cortez about where they were in Spanish. Ned and MJ ran interference behind him. "Just leave him alone, guys, leave him; he's already been through shit and now this!"

Mrs. Cortez let Peter hide in her classroom for the rest of lunch and even eat. "Aunt May'll get upset if I don't eat everything she packs for me." He made comical faces drinking his Starkified Ensure ( _still_ stuck with that nasty stuff) and Mrs. Cortez gave him a couple of bananas.

"You need good nutrition after what you went through. I'll suspend my no-food-in-class rule for you if you ever get hungry," she told him.

"Thanks. I won't need it if people'd let me _eat_ at lunchtime, but I got mobbed!"

Mrs. Cortez sighed. "I know it's unfair to burden you with this on top of everything else, Peter, but try to be patient with your classmates. This past month was very frightening for all of us. Even students who don't know you have seen those reports of what happened to so many children their age, and if you, a nice, good student from Queens - even a white student - can be treated that way, it drives home that nobody can feel safe."

She made it sound random. Peter couldn't exactly explain that it wasn't. _Either way, I'm kind of a fraud._ Mr. Stark and May had insisted there was no law being broken by not telling reporters details about his private life. " _Spider-Man is private until you decide otherwise,"_ Ms. Potts had agreed.

Towards the end of the day, Principal Morita pulled Peter aside. Peter made a face at Ned, but followed him back to the principal's office. "Well, far be it for our lives to be simple," Morita sighed. "We had a confession, but that's now been withdrawn, and Flash's parents are threatening to sue if we punish him without 'proof' that he is the one who reported you were Spider-Man."

"How exactly could anybody prove that?" Peter asked.

Morita shrugged. "A subpoena for his phone records, maybe, though Flash is intelligent enough to have known not to use his phone. I'm pushing the line by telling you this, but it'll get around, and you deserve to know."

"Thanks," Peter murmured, staring out the window. "Did he...say why?" _Did he really hate me that much?_

"Not exactly. I know this isn't worth much, but it's clear that he had no idea of what would happen to you. We didn't connect it at the time, but the day word got around school of how you were treated in that detention center, he was so violently sick that his mother came to pick him up, and we went on alert for a possible GI outbreak."

Incredibly, Peter felt himself laugh. "What did he think _would_ happen?"

"He said something about juvie. Mr. Harrington and your other teachers say his envy of you isn't exactly a secret. He wouldn't be the first teenaged boy who found an attempted play at a rival had far bigger consequences. Still," Morita leaned back in his chair. "If you want, I will require that he apologize to you publicly - "

Peter vigorously shook his head. "No. No, uh-uh, no way."

"Okay. If you're sure."

"Yeah. It's not worth trying to get him to...do anything, especially if his mom and dad don't care. I just...I just want to forget about it."

* * *

Peter had to have that conversation with a _lot_ of people during his first week back. Despite whatever threats Mr. and Mrs. Thompson had made, word passed like wildfire, and Flash was a complete pariah in a matter of days.

Jessica broke up with Flash and loudly told her friends why (then threw her arms around Peter's neck and cried apologies for "Flash getting you tortured"). Flash didn't show up for decathlon practice, and Ned gleefully reported that nobody in robotics would talk to him.

Now Flash was the one who ate lunch alone everyday.

By the end of Peter's first week back at school, Ned and MJ and the decathlon team had managed to declare a moratorium on talking about "it" - which included Flash Thompson's role in getting Peter into "it" in the first place.

Peter felt a little better once that got around. People started talking about school stuff again, gossiping about who was dating who and prom preparations and the upcoming first AP exams for the sophomores. (Peter took Mr. Carpenter and MJ up on tutoring him in European History twice a week. He would rather have focused on Physics and Calculus, but history was harder for him than Physics.)

Half the school was appalled, the other half inspired when Peter reported that he was still doing the "Stark internship" three days a week. "You still want to do that after... _it?!"_ demanded Sally Avril.

Peter shrugged. "Maybe more than ever."

That second week, on the pre-chosen day, Happy came to pick Peter up in a reasonably-nondescript car, and drove him out to Avengers headquarters without putting the privacy screen up. He actually asked about school, and when Peter tried to explain his AP Physics and Calculus track, Happy laughed and muttered, "If I'd known Tony at sixteen..."

At the compound, Peter did tell Mr. Stark and Colonel Rhodes about Flash Thompson. Both men scowled, and Peter hastily said, "I don't want anyone to...do anything. Really. I just want to forget about it."

"I hope he's getting his ass beat in gym every day," Colonel Rhodes muttered.

Peter snorted, "No, only because Coach Wilson fends 'em off, and I tell 'em to lay off."

"Have it your way. Now, Tony asked me to work with you today about evaluating threats. I hate to break the news to you, but training's not always gonna be bang-bang-wham-the bad guys. We're not living in a comic book; our job involves _thinking,_ which _somebody,"_ he pointed at Mr. Stark, who feigned baffled innocence, "often neglects to do until the last possible second, which does nothing good for my blood pressure."

Peter had to laugh. It was actually fun. Mr. Stark and Colonel Rhodes kept getting into arguments about stuff that'd happened before Peter was born, and they both told awesome stories. Peter would totally have taken notes by choice, if it weren't for the fact that he wasn't supposed to be an Avenger, so he couldn't carry that stuff around.

"Tell you what. When you're in your suit, I'll have Karen make all our sessions available for replay, in case you're having a slow night," said Mr. Stark. He'd definitely have to find time to re-play them, because he got freaking _quizzed_ on the stuff they went over, and Colonel Rhodes promised him a round of paintball practice that weekend if he did well on the quizzes. "Actually, _we'll_ have the paintballs. _You'll_ have your web," Mr. Stark corrected him.

It still sounded awesome. Peter was as tired on the ride home as if he'd been doing physical stuff, but at least May was reassured that he was learning more than just how to fight.

"Like, how to recognize different kinds of guns and what to do to disarm people. Now if I see something that looks like alien tech, I've got a special signal to send to Mr. Stark, and I only intervene if people are in danger, not like that...uh...ATM robbery."

May dropped her head onto the kitchen table. "Argh, I'd forgotten about that. Well, I'm glad you let the robbers get away so you could get Mr. Delmar and Murph out!"

"Yeah, I felt bad about that; I almost didn't go to the grand re-opening in January."

"Well, I'm glad you did. His feelings would've been hurt. He brought me sandwiches every day after word got out that you were missing."

"I am _so_ giving his daughter my number."

* * *

Before the end of his first week back, Peter cracked. The tension at lunch was just too much. The scrape of chairs people pulled away from Flash's table, making a big show of not sitting near him, the _thud_ of books and bags against the table, the muttered comments...Peter wanted to yell at everyone to just shut up.

 _Whatever he did, he did to me, not all of you, and none of you gave a damn about me until I was a headline on CNN!_

Flash looked like hell. He didn't talk in class or at lunch and nobody talked to him. He looked like he wasn't sleeping too well, and he was losing weight.

A part of Peter was a little smug about that. Peter had lost weight too, and he'd managed to see a picture of what he looked like the morning after being rescued before Mr. Stark took it off the screen. He'd looked a lot worse than Flash looked now.

Still...that spiteful part of Peter wasn't enough to make anything really feel _better._ Peter still cringed when a car drove by with the bass on the radio turned up. He couldn't go anywhere near band practice without hyperventilating; he still woke up mumbling for _them_ to "please call Mr. Stark". Thank God May hadn't heard him...yet.

By Friday, he'd had enough. On top of all the other weights on his mind, Flash and all the unanswered questions and frustration were weighing down, and it was just too much.

So instead of going to the table he now shared with MJ and Ned, a few of the decathlon and robotics sophomores, and whoever else could get to the table first, Peter changed direction after picking up a bottle of water from the vending machine.

The whole cafeteria got quiet, and Peter deliberately looked only at his lunch bag as he sat down at Flash's table and pulled his AP Physics book out.

Well, he did wince at the outrage in Ned's voice. " _What_ the - "

"Shh! Ned, leave him alone!"

 _Thanks, MJ._ Peter looked up and shot her a quick, grateful smile, then returned to shoveling his huge lunch down and trying to finish some three-week-old Physics problems. He didn't have to turn them in, but he'd need the practice.

He felt Flash's eyes on him for the whole lunch.

On the following Monday, Peter sat at Flash's table again. Ned sighed and started to go with him, but MJ grabbed him by the collar and pulled him away.

On Tuesday, Flash saw Peter wrestling with another set of Physics problems and said, "Don't do Number Three. Ms. Warren figured out there's a bunch of typos in the book. We skipped it."

"Oh." No wonder it'd seemed unsolvable. Peter drew a line through it. "Thanks."

By Wednesday, MJ had convinced just about everyone to leave Peter alone and "let him do what he's gotta do."

Peter did ask her, "What do you think I've gotta do?"

MJ shrugged. "None of my business or anybody else's."

That Wednesday, the cafeteria was really quiet with the band, football team, cheerleaders, and dance crew getting ready for a pep rally. With fewer people around to stare and whisper (or eavesdrop) the elephant in the room finally got loose - or whatever it was elephants in a room did.

Flash muttered, very quietly, "I never thought anything like that would happen to you."

Peter froze with a protein bar halfway to his mouth, then made himself take a bite and swallow it before answering. "What'd you think _would_ happen?"

"That you'd get juvie or something. And expelled."

Peter let his voice be scornful. "So getting me expelled was the only way you thought you could get better grades than me, or make the decathlon team?" Flash didn't answer. "And you actually thought I _was_ Spider-Man?" If a little voice in his conscience said that he was turning his double life into a triple life, he told himself Flash deserved this much.

"I dunno. Everyone knew you were hiding something. I figured whatever it was, the cops would get you for it. 'm sorry."

Holy shit, Flash Thompson had just apologized.

Peter focused on his notebook. He still hadn't come up with what to say in response, if anything, when the bell rang. It made him jump, and before he could help himself, he saw the dismay on Flash's face.

Flash got that same look when Peter had to leave the pep rally because it was just too much noise and movement. Luckily, the teachers didn't question him.

On Thursday, Peter sat at Flash's table again anyway. When lunch was almost over, he muttered, "I know you weren't trying to get me tortured."

After several minutes of silence, Flash confirmed, "I swear, I wasn't."

"I know."

On Friday, MJ got up from the other table and stalked over to theirs. "You guys care if I try and get some work done since nobody else wants to talk about anything but prom?"

Peter smiled at his notebook. "Join the club." A few minutes later, Ned came to their table too.

After school, Ned finally got up the courage to ask Peter, "Why'd you...sit with him? I don't get it, man."

Peter leaned against his locker and finally confessed, "I dunno. Not really. I just...I know he was being a dick, but he wasn't trying to get me tortured. That part's not his fault. He couldn't've known what they were gonna do to me. _Us,"_ he corrected himself, shutting his eyes. "To all of us. There were a lot of other kids in there."

"D'you...we don't have to talk about it if you don't want to." But Peter shrugged, so Ned went on cautiously, "D'you know what happened to the other kids?"

Peter just said, "I know they got rescued. I dunno where they are now, just hope they're okay."

* * *

After that second week, Peter found himself thinking obsessively about those other kids, so he ended up asking Mr. Stark on his next "internship" visit. "I'll check in with XSGY, see if they made any progress," Mr. Stark promised.

By the time Peter and Vision were finished running a _fantastic_ obstacle course that Colonel Rhodes had designed, Mr. Stark had answers – and pizza. "Almost half of the rescued kids from all those detention centers were taken by force from their families under one pretext or another, that includes three of the kids in the Raft special section with you. They've all been reunited, and the X-Men and I are helping relocate the families if they don't feel safe where they were."

"What about the others?" Peter asked, losing all interest in his pizza. "You're saying...more than half _weren't_ taken by force? Their families were...okay with it?" He remembered Madison Jeffries saying his family had kicked him out. People kicked their kids out just for being mutants?!

Mr. Stark sighed. "The world's a shitty place, kid. The older you get, the more different ways you'll see how shitty it is. There's an infinite variety of shitty. A lot of them are runaways, including one girl who was in that section with you. She's gonna stay at XSGY. Most of the ones that're homeless are staying at XSGY. T'Challa offered to help relocate anyone who wanted to go abroad, to countries more tolerant of mutants. Even some of the Americans took him up on it."

Peter thought they had established the fact that the world was shitty - and also that Mr. Stark hadn't really answered the question. "Some kids got turned in _by_ their families, didn't they?"

Both Mr. Stark and Vision avoided Peter's eyes. In the end, Mr. Stark nodded. "Most of those kids'll stay at Xavier's. They'll be safe."

"Several other survivors of the 'special program' are coming forward to the public with the blessing of their families," Vision said, sounding like he was trying to cheer Peter up. "Jesse Aaronson, Samuel Guthrie, and Roxanne Washington are both acknowledged mutants who were taken by force from their families and subjected to the same treatment as you. They've now been reunited with their parents, and are being interviewed by Larry King and Oprah Winfrey next week. This program will eventually cost the United States government billions of dollars, with very little benefit to show for it."

That was something, Peter supposed. But... "How many people died?"

Mr. Stark turned and walked towards the window. Vision watched him, and after a heavy silence, Mr. Stark said, "You keeping track?" Vision nodded. "Tell him. If he wants to know."

Peter nodded, so Vision said, "Reports vary, Peter. There were fatalities in nearly every detention center, and there were also a number of shooting deaths by authorities as a result of 'resistance' to attempts at arrests." Peter swallowed hard and waited. "Current estimates are that anywhere from one hundred ninety to four hundred seventy people died in the United States alone."

Peter lost his appetite completely. He didn't want to waste good pizza, so he shut the box and carried it into the kitchen. Mr. Stark followed him.

"You helped end that program, you know. Standing in front of those reporters took guts."

Peter shrugged. "I just did what you and Ms. Potts said to do."

He reached for a water bottle on the counter, but his arm sort of got tangled up with Mr. Stark's, and he blushed, stammering, "Wasn't trying to hug you again, I just was getting a water - "

"I know you weren't," said Mr. Stark, not letting go of Peter's arm. "But I was hugging _you_."

To Peter's complete disbelief, Mr. Stark pulled him into his arms. _Tight,_ almost the way May hugged him now, like she was so relieved he was here and that he'd fly away if she didn't hang on. Hesitantly, Peter closed his arms around Mr. Stark and leaned in, and Mr. Stark kept hugging him.

"You're a good kid, you know?" Mr. Stark murmured. "You're an amazing kid. I'm proud of you." Peter was so shocked that he pulled back, just enough to make sure that was really Mr. Stark. Yep, there was the smirk...Mr. Stark really had said that. He chucked Peter under the chin. "Aw, come on, is it that shocking?"

"...yeah?"

"Damn. Well, I meant it. Every word, so pay attention. I'm crap at expressing emotions." He looked at his watch. "Get your stuff. Let's get you home."

"Thanks, Mr. Stark," Peter whispered.

"You know, you can call me Tony."

Peter grinned as they walked out the door. "Okay, Mr. Stark."

"Are you sassing me?"

"Maybe a little, Mr. Stark."

 _ **To Be Continued...**_

 _ **Coming Soon:**_ _Only the Epilogue remains in which the final loose threads are tied up!_

 **PLEASE don't forget to review**


	17. Epilogue

_**Author's Notes:**_ _So, this is it, dear readers, the end of the tale! Many thanks many times over to all of your for the amazing feedback and discussion! It means so much to me to hear from you! I'm tentatively contemplating a sequel, but it's still very much in the planning stages, so it might be awhile before it sees the light of day._

 **Epilogue**

The night after Roxy Washington and Sam Guthrie appeared on Oprah as survivors of the Sentinel detention centers, Peter found the building where he'd seen Ali Blaire, with Karen's help. He staked it out for two nights until he saw her again on the fire escape.

This time, she wasn't making lights. Peter swung down the buildings on neighboring streets, pretending not to notice her until he heard her squeal of "Spider-Man!" then he leaped across the rooftops.

"Hey, Ali! Long time, no see!"

Even as he landed, Ali's mom was coming out onto the landing, looking even more stressed and anxious than Peter remembered. "Mommy, look, it's Spider-Man!" Ali exclaimed.

"Y-yes, I see."

Peter hesitated. How exactly was he supposed to bring this up to a mom who was this scared? "So, uh, how's Ali's light show going? Got her signed up for America's Got Talent yet?"

"Ali doesn't do that anymore," Ali's mom said. Ali's face fell. But finally, her mom leaned forward and said, "I told her what happened to that boy who worked with you. It's too dangerous to do…abnormal-looking things."

"Yeah, uh...the thing is, she shouldn't have to hide who she is either," Peter cautiously pushed back. Ali's mom pursued her lips, then stalked back into the building. Peter followed her as Ali trotted morosely after them. At least Ali's mom didn't slam their apartment door in his face.

"It's fine for _you_ to say stuff like that," Ali's mom snapped once they were in their apartment with the door closed. "You can hide behind a mask and Tony Stark! Those Sentinel detention centers may be gone, but there're still goons digging around medical records and putting names on the Internet! Do you know how hard it is to make an eight-year-old understand?!"

Peter sighed. Ali looked like she was going to cry. "Ali...why don't you let your mom and me talk, okay?"

Ali hesitated, but her mom reinforced it with, "Go to your room." Peter hated the way her shoulders slumped as she obeyed. Folding her arms, Ali's mom told him, "I don't need any government agents paying attention to my daughter - any more than they already are, since I'm having to homeschool her while holding down a job to make sure she doesn't just disappear!"

"I'm sorry," Peter whispered. "Look...I did come looking for her, because I remembered how scared you were. And after...what happened, I've started paying more attention to people who're - y'know, different. Especially when that 'difference' isn't gonna hurt anybody." Ali's mom watched him warily, and he pulled one of the business cards for XSGY out of his pocket. "There's a safe place for kids like her. They like it when parents come too; some kids just get kicked out onto the street."

Ali's mom looked appalled. "They take her away from me over my dead body."

Peter wasn't sure if she was talking about the government or the school, and said hastily, "I've been to this school. I went to visit it after my, uh, intern got detained. The kids there are safe. It's an actual prep school."

Ali's mom gazed at the nice business card with the pretty little image of the X-mansion and said, "I could never afford a school like this."

"You don't need to. They don't charge anything." Peter lowered his voice still further. "It's more a safe house than just a school, for mutants."

Ali's mom sighed. "Look...Spider-Man...I want to believe you, but I've learned the hard way not to trust strangers when it comes to my daughter. Too many people want to get their hands on her for their agendas."

Peter sighed. He supposed he couldn't blame her. He glanced around, noticing that all the windows were shuttered. _Mr. Stark would probably kill me..._ When he reached for the base of his mask, Karen exclaimed, " _Peter, that's not a good idea!_ "

Peter did it anyway. Ali's mom's eyes widened as he pulled the mask off. "I know, not everybody's got Tony Stark and the Avengers to help keep a secret identity secret _after_ getting locked up."

"So...you _are..._ wow," she breathed. "But...the Sentinels, what'd they do to you?"

Peter looked down. "They hurt me, I won't deny it. Well, they hurt everybody they picked up, but they singled me out with four other kids. Those kids are mutants. It was a mutant rescue team that found me and called Iron Man for help. After I healed, I went to their school. They offered to let me stay, but...I just want to be friendly neighborhood Spider-Man for as long as I can. Hence the cover story."

"You went through all that, and you'd still show me?" Ali's mom asked dubiously. "You don't even know me."

"No," Peter admitted, then shrugged. "Obviously, now you could 'out' me if you wanted to."

"I wouldn't do that," she blurted.

He smiled. "I believe you. Ali's a cute kid. And I don't care what bigoted morons say; what she does with lights is awesome. She deserves to get to be a kid, _and_ be herself. And neither of you should have to be afraid." He nodded towards the business card in her hand and pulled the mask back on. "You should call them. Tell them I gave you the card. They know I've got them."

"Is it really safe?" Ali's mom whispered. "Nobody'll take her or try to... _do_ anything with her?"

"No. It's up to you in the end, but give 'em a call. I trust them."

Ali's mom smiled weakly. "She adores you. She thinks you're a bigger hero than Iron Man _or_ Captain America."

What a thought. Peter laughed. "Dunno, I don't think I've been doing this long enough. Well, I've gotta get back to work. Just think about giving them a call, okay? Even if you decide not to enroll Ali, I think they could help you feel a little safer."

* * *

Peter didn't see Ali or her mom outside again for the next month, and _almost_ gave in to the temptation to knock on their door.

Finally, when he arrived at Avengers headquarters for a Saturday training session, Mr. Stark was on the phone. "Go on down to the training room and warm up, kid, I just need to finish this up. The others are down there."

By "others," Peter assumed he meant Rhodey and Vision. Suited up, he arrived in the training room and found that the number of trainers had tripled. Captain America was there, suited up, along with Black Widow, Scarlet Witch, Falcon, Hawkeye, Ant-Man...and Bucky Barnes. Vision and Rhodey were there too, chatting with Cap's team like they were all friends.

"Hey, there he is! Step lively, kid, we're revving team practice up from here on out," said Rhodey.

Peter was glad the mask of the suit hid the way he blushed as he said hi to them all, but it didn't hide his stammer. "S-so...it's safe? For all of you now?"

Falcon smirked. "Funny how Secretary Ross didn't think it was necessary to issue a press release that the charges against us got dropped."

Peter couldn't help the way he looked at Bucky. "All of 'em?" Bucky just nodded. "Good."

Nobody went into any details, and Peter couldn't bring himself to ask how that had come about. In the end, Cap clapped his hands and said, "So! Show us what you've been teaching the new kid."

Peter gratefully launched into warm-ups with Wanda Maximoff, Clint Barton, and Scott Lang right behind.

* * *

Tony shamelessly hid for the first hour of practice. Cap's shock had been kind of funny when Tony informed him that the JAG office and the Justice Department had examined the medical evidence obtained from Hydra as well as the more recent evidence supplied by Wakanda and found that James Buchanan Barnes couldn't be held responsible for the actions of the Winter Soldier.

Tony himself had exerted some political pressure that the public debate over a POW's treatment in a government or military tribunal wasn't a PR nightmare that anyone needed. He'd been smug about letting Cap and his team know he'd done that.

Even as Steve tried to stammer out gratitude, Barnes had been very quiet – and had seen to the heart of Tony's decision. "I didn't realize he meant that much to you," he'd remarked softly.

"Now you do," Tony had told him. _It's only for him, not you, not even Cap - well, I guess kind of for Cap. Maybe a little for Wanda too. Mostly for Peter. But not you._

That was shitty, the rational part of Tony had to admit it. If Tony really thought Barnes had done what he did to Tony's family with any sort of malice, even Peter's feelings wouldn't have protected the bastard.

Still, the irrational part of him was too entrenched and impacted to remove. There was no getting the memories of that video out of Tony's mind, and it would never let Tony Stark feel friendly towards James Barnes.

Whatever; Tony'd worked with people he didn't feel friendly about before. He could do it again, especially when the stakes were high and they had priorities in common.

Barnes had been ready to die to save Peter Parker. Tony could work with that.

Still, right before their first reunited Avengers group training session, Tony's nerves failed, and he watched the team from the camera feed and pretended to be arguing with someone on his phone.

T'Challa got there late; he'd been working with the X-Men on forming some kind of "gifted" school of his own in Wakanda, and Pepper was absolutely certain that there was a _thing_ between him and that gorgeous Munroe woman.

 _He_ was friendly with Cap and Barnes, and the three of them were soon yakking about vibranium with the fascinated, now-unmasked Peter, who then ended up fucking _arm-wrestling_ with Barnes' metal arm. (They stalemated, to Tony's private amusement and T'Challa's dismay. Peter beat out even Cap in brute strength, along with everyone else except Vision.)

"Are you going to hide in here in front of the camera feed and mope every time Bucky Barnes is in the building?" Pepper demanded from the doorway.

Tony jumped. "Don't skulk, Pepper, or I'll mistake you for a supervillain."

Pepper waggled whatever obscenely-expensive four-inch heels she was wearing. "Yes, Mr. Stark, this is my supervillain skulking footwear. Your hearing is going in your old age." She came over and wrapped her arms around his waist from behind. "You made the right choice. Stop brooding and get in there. Rip the Band-Aid off."

Tony sighed. He knew she was right. She had some...what were those, postcards? "What're those?"

"Oh, T'Challa brought them. He and I thought you should be the one to give 'em to Peter."

Tony looked at them, then smiled. Suddenly, making himself suit up and head down to the training room was a little easier. "You guys manage to get this kid warmed up, or do I have to do everything around here?" he demanded as he sauntered into the training room.

"He said, strolling in ninety minutes late and with Starbucks," said Rhodey, the traitor. Peter just grinned, bright as if adding Tony to this gathering had actually made him happy.

Tony corrected Rhodey, "With mail call, actually. Here, kid." He handed Peter the two postcards.

Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters wasn't the kind of prep school that'd issue things like these, so somebody there must have cooked them up especially for Peter. Tony was glad, to think that the X-Men still had a soft spot for the kid. It was one more place, one more team that would help keep the kid safe.

Reading the cards, Peter's eyes got huge.

 ** _Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters welcomes Alison "Ali" Blaire to Grade 3!  
_** _Ali is joining Grade 3 and junior theatre and chorus!_

Below was a picture of a little girl sitting on the stairs of the red brick mansion where Peter had been introduced to the X-Men. The second card showed a picture of a group of men and women, with a woman who resembled Ali Blaire standing next to them.

 ** _Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters welcomes new faculty, Katherine Blaire-Brown!  
_** _Mrs. Brown is joining the school administration for infant through Grade 5!_

"I met little Ali and her mother on my visit today," said King T'Challa. "They asked me to tell you that they're very grateful to you. One of the teaching assistants made these and asked me to bring them to you."

Peter just stared at the pictures and said nothing. Tony put a hand on his shoulder and waited until he looked up.

"Nice work, kid."

 **~Fin~**


End file.
